


D/C

by Crystalliced



Category: Original Work
Genre: Awkward Relationships, F/M, Fluff, Gaming, MMORPG, Murder, Original work - Freeform, Secrets, Violence, Weapons, friendships, magic use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-13
Updated: 2014-11-05
Packaged: 2018-02-12 23:00:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 27,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2127690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crystalliced/pseuds/Crystalliced
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary - In an alternate universe designed as an endless, fantastical RPG (role-playing game) anything and everything is possible.  So when two unlikely players are brought together by a mysterious, unique, and highly valued quest, a lot of fighting, betrayal, and fluff ensure.  The twist?  This game is reality, and there can only be one survivor...</p><p>Discontinued:  Please follow the rewritten version.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very basic prologue.

...Loading...

****

Welcome to DreamCloud V46.  Constructing character avatar...

  
Done!  Constructing character personality...  **  
**

Done!  

****

You will be spawned in thirty seconds.  Upon arrival you may experience a few seconds of pain as our databases load your brain with the basic information needed to communicate effectively in this world.  The knowledge you need to survive and flourish will be found as you continue to experience the reality that is forming even as you read this.  

****

Everything you need to know will be at your disposal.  The question is, are you good enough to use it properly? **  
**

Of course, you won’t remember any of this upon your spawn.   **  
**

Spawning character... **  
**

Character Name:  Tyler.  Gender:  Boy.  

  
_** Welcome to Journey’s End! ** _ **  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler (c) Crystalliced


	2. Floor 1 - Part 1 (Beginning)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Tyler's Point-Of-View.

 

    "Gah!"

    That's the sound of gigabytes of information being shoved into your brain all at once.  Like trying to cram thirteen years of homework into one night.

    Wait, homework?  What's that?  My newly updated brain associated the word with a profoundly repulsive taste.

    Repulsive?  Profoundly?  Updated?  What are all these words?  Thinking made my head hurt, but it's not like there was anything I could do about it.  I collapsed, scraping my hands and knees as I caught myself on the  sidewalk  while my brain made all the  connections it needed to create.  After what seemed like an eternity of intense, throbbing pain, I stood up to take in my surroundings.  I had, along with other players, spawned in some sort of  metropolis, metallic buildings with clear windows -  glass \- and hardened concrete surrounding me .   It looked like I was the first in a group of fifty or so to stagger to my feet.  Sweeping my arm up to shield my hands from the sunlight, I heard a faint chime before a small white  menu popped up.  A tab called [Inventory] glowed a soft green, and out of curiosity, I reached out a finger to press it.  The only item in it was the image of a small little red book called <Tutorial:  Please Open Now>.  I frowned.

     Vestiges of the fierce headache still remain, so I was hesitant to select the book.  Did I really want to touch this thing before I was at my full mental capacity?  My eyes honed in on the words, "Open Now."  

    I tapped on it, and my surroundings disappeared around me.

 

    Everything around me was endlessly white.  There was nothing. Solid, featureless floor.  Empty sky.  

    A menu expanded in front of me, words appearing and scrolling across the screen.   [Hello, player 2174.  Welcome to Dreamcloud, the world currently loaded.  Running bug check on character, please stand still.]   The choice was taken from me when I felt my limbs lock into place, and a green scanning laser ran across my body.   [Scanning Complete!  No errors detected.  Welcome to the tutorial.  Here, you will select your build, starting skills, and basic information on how to play the game.  Any personal adjustments to your avatar can also be made here.]

A hologram appeared next to the menu, spinning slowly.  Looking down at my body, I realized that it was me.

[Randomly selected name:  Tyler.  Is this acceptable?]  A yes and no button popped up under the window.  I shrugged and hit <Yes>.  

[Randomly generated avatar appearance.  Is this acceptable?]  Black hair, black eyes.  Lean, not overly muscular, lighter skin, somewhat short.  Meh.  Sure.

[Please select your character build.]  A menu popped up, showing me the types of builds I could use.

    [Brute], for example, had increased Strength and Defense points at the cost of Magic level-up bonuses.

    [Mage] had increased Agility and Magic points at the cost of Strength points.

    [Tank] had increased Defense and Strength points at the cost of Agility points.

    I tapped the help button at the top-right of the corner and a list of terminology appeared.

Strength \- Allows use of heavier weapons, more powerful attacks, resistance to interruptive attacks.

Defense \- Take less damage, resistance to status conditions, bonus to health, increased ability to stand ground.

Agility \- Increased movement speed, increased attack speed.

Magic  \- Increased mana points, higher potency of elemental sword skills, makes spells more intense.

Level-Up \- Gaining a certain amount of EXP will increase your overall level.  This will give you stat points that you can use to increase your base stats.  Your health automatically goes up.

     I tapped all the words I didn't recognize and windows popped up for each.  These had a little X on the top left corner.

Interruptive Attacks \- These can stun you to cause your attack to fail, leaving you open to counterattack.

Status Conditions \- Lingering effects that can harm your ability to fight, move, or survive.  They are: Paralysis, Freeze, Burn, Poison, Stun.

 Paralysis \- A status effect that frequently interrupts your movement and attacks.  Wears off on its own.

Freeze \- A status condition completely preventing movement and attack.  Often wears off quickly.  Fire attacks hitting you while <Frozen> cause a critical hit.

Critical Hits \- Attacks will cause 2x damage.  They are activated by hitting weak spots in a mob, or by meeting certain conditions.  Surprise-attacking an entity will cause an automatic critical hit.  Certain sword skills will cause a critical hit, or increase the likelihood of one.

Sword Skills  \- Active abilities that you active manually or automatically.  Activation depends on the skill.  They can do extra damage, cause multiple hits, or cause status effects.  Effect depends greatly on the sword skill.

Burn \- Cause slow damage over time.  Will not wear off until the burn is treated.

Poison \- Cause quick damage over time. Curing the poison depends on potency.

    Back to stats.

Mana Points \- Spells and elemental attack use up these points.

Spells \- Magical attacks.  They can be offensive, defensive, or support spells.

    Hm...

    I definitely want magic as one of my boosts.  Magic sounds like a powerful tool and it's definitely something I want to be able to use effectively.  But the other?

    Strength and Defense both sound like stats I should focus on.  Resistance to spells and stuns, plus survivability and power - those are core stats.  But from what it sounds like, I can level those up when necessary.  And both can be supported by choosing a different stat.

    Agility.  Increasing speed.  Hit faster, to deal more damage.  Move faster, to dodge more attacks.  After all...why use Defense when you can't be hit?  My choice made, I selected the <Ninja> class, strong in AGI/MAG and weak in DEF.  

    Weapon selection.  I couldn't use things like [Two-handed sword] since I didn't favor STR - it would be contradictory to use a heavy weapon with my build.  Hm...

    [Dual-Wielding] sounded like an interesting choice.  It would help cover defensively for me, allowing me to use multiple swords to block attacks.  Selecting the <Preview> option materialized two simple, lightweight steel swords that I wave around.  My biggest worry was that I couldn't use my left hand as efficiently as my right, but that concern was alleviated with the first swing of my swords.  Both are uniform and equal in power.  I notice a faint purple glow from my last swing, where I swung both my swords straight down.  A window informs me that I have just manually activated <Double Vertical>.

    My first sword skill.  I like it.

 

     I exit the tutorial with basic leather armor and two silver swords about sixty centimeters in length.  [Basic Paired Sword], with a base damage of 20.  A small HUD in the bottom of my vision shows me the durability of the swords and armor and the level of the [Dual-Wielding] skill.  It also shows a simple map, which I tap to zoom in my route.  The tutorial mentioned a book, outside the city, that supposedly detailed the history of the game.  It warned, however, that PvP was on there, and monsters guarded the location.

   "Fine by me."  I mutter, blasting past bewildered players and a bulletin board en route to the location marked on my map.  Let's go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd really appreciate feedback, but won't impose any limits or silly things like that. Enjoy :)
> 
> Now that the boring stuff is over, let's get into some fight scenes!
> 
> Tyler (c) Crystalliced


	3. Floor 1 - Part 2 (The First Strike)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tyler meets Anna, a magician. Reaching the book, he finds an unpleasant surprise.

The first mob that I encounter is some sort of plant.  The nametag above it calls the thing a [Red Stalk].  It's tall, with a stalk that extends from roots hastily driven into the ground.  The head is light red and resembles some sort of cannon.  

    A theory that isn't too far off, as I dodge the first fireball expelled from its mouth.  Already putting those AGI points to use, I guess.  

    My dash forward brings my swords into range of its head, and I vault over the plant and swing down to dodge the fireball and deal damage.  It's not a sword skill, so the damage is reduced quite a bit.  A ringing sound and a flashy light effect informs me that I have scored a critical hit. 

    The plant is very slow in changing directions.  I land a [Double Horizontal] on the stalk of the plant for another critical hit, then chain a second series of slashes for more damage before jumping away, as the [Red Stalk] has finally managed to twist around and shoot a blast at me.  The health bar above its head is deep in the red, one more hit should be enough to make the kill...

    Another fireball flies at me, and instead of dodging it I cross my swords in a X, thinking that I can block it.

    A ringing sound, and I find myself on my back thirty meters away from the [Red Stalk], back hurting.  I stagger to my feet, only realizing that I was disarmed when I glance back and see my swords lying on the ground a few meters behind me. 

    The ache in my head fades after a few seconds.  I'm about to scoop my weapons back up when something, instinct, warns me.  I dive to the ground as a second fireball flashes right over my head, before picking up the swords and sprinting back to the fight.  What I see isn't reassuring.

    Three other [Red Stalks] have spawned, and the original one's health is back in the yellow.  As I watch disbelievingly, its roots pulse and the health slides into yellow.

    Not only can it shoot fireballs, it can regenerate its health.  Speaking of which...

    My health hovers at about 67%.  Not good.  Against one, I would be fine.  Two would be pushing it.  Four?

    They all shoot their fireballs at me simultaneously and I dart a few meters to the side, relieved.  If they all shoot at once I only need to really dodge once-

     A loud explosion shoves me off my feet.  This time, however, I manage to retain my weapons and spring to my feet, dashing away to avoid the next series of convergent fireballs.  They all shoot at the same time, at the same place.  Yes, I only need to dodge once, but...

     The fireballs all explode on contact, multiplying the force of the explosion, and likely a one-shot kill, too.  How long do I have between barrages?  I continue sprinting erratically to throw off their aim, and the next shots sail way past my left as I continue kiting.

     Counting in my head, I get to ten before the next explosion sends me a few feet into the air.  Ten seconds.  I circle the group of plants, creating a lull in the shooting as they can not turn as fast as I can run around them.  As soon as I'm satisfied, I dash in and begin rapidly cutting at the stalk of one of the [Red Stalks], dashing right into the middle of the group.  The plants finally manage to face me, and they all fire, just as I vault away. 

    The explosion rings out, but I do not wait for the dust to settle, continuing to circle the dust cloud as a fireball blasts past me.

     The smoke clears.  Three of the plants are dead, destroyed by their ally.  The fourth one is running on a sliver of health, and turned the wrong way.  A simple dash and slash is enough to tear it open, creating the sound of shattering glass as the final [Red Stalk] dissipates into shards.  A menu popping up, showing me that I’ve earned 140 exp and a [Healing Potion I].

    Someone starts clapping behind me.  I whirl around, swords in hand.  A short girl with curly red hair, ice blue eyes, light skin, and a green knee-length dress grins at me, magical wand held to her side.  Seeing her relaxed position, I lower my swords warily.  

    "That was quite the performance!"  She says cheerily, and I glance at her health bar to see her labeled "Anna".  I shrug.  "Thanks?"  I reply, and she chuckles. 

    "Do you have the magic skill <Fire Bolt>?"  Anna asks me, and I blink.  "Wait, there are magic skills?"  She mutters something and points her star-shaped wand into the air, and a second later a flaming shard fires out of the wand with a bang.  I flinch at the unexpected sound.  "Of course there are!"  She says, skipping over to me and grabbing my hand.  "Here, look!"  By manipulating my hand she is able to open up a menu and navigate to a screen titled "Spells."  

    She pokes a finger at the glowing button labeled "Fire Bolt."  

    "Yes, you do!"  She exclaims unnecessarily.  I'm too bewildered by her actions to stop her.  "You can do that too if...hm..."  She thinks for a moment, then bats a sword from my hand.  Startled, I drop it.

    "Stick your hand out and say, 'Fire Bolt!'"  She chirps, then shrieks when I point my hand at her teasingly.  "Not at me!"  

     "Fire Bolt."  I whisper, aiming up, and I feel a buck as a similar flame, if less potent, shoot out into the air.  "Thanks!"  I say, and she laughs.  "Oh, it's nothing!  Anyways, my point is that those mobs you were fighting are plant-based, so fire attacks do critical hits!"  As we're talking, one of the [Red Stalks] spawn behind us with a buzzing sound, and without looking Anna shoots it with a large fireball and insta-kills it.

    "Using a wand gives you access to a lot more spells, and lets you use a spell without needing to say it out loud."  Anna explains, seeing my confused look.  I nod in comprehension.  "Wait, how did you know?"  She stares at me.  "Well, they're plants, so you use fire..."  //deadpan//

     "No, I mean, how did you guess I had [Fire Bolt]?"  I say, and her eyes widen.  "Oh!  Well, it's a Level One Offensive Spell, so everyone spawns with it.  Here, look!"  She shows me her screen, letting me see that [Fire Bolt] has a small 1 next to it.  "Then your Magic level determines how many more you can get."  Her MAG stat is already 36.  I run a look over my stats.  They're way, way lower.  "How are your stats so high?"  I ask, and she points with her wand.  "Wand users have automatically increased MAG stats.  But when the wand is equipped, all they can use is magic."  I nod.  "For example, my [Basic Wand] multiplies my magic level by two." That's a bit of a fatal flaw...relying solely on magic?  Surely it must have its limits?  How much defense can a wand-user have?  They're probably fragile, AGI/MAG builds like my own.  I think about Anna.  If I were to 1v1 her now...I'd likely lose.  That fire blast that wiped out the plants...I can't dodge something like that.  And who knows what else she is hiding...

     "Well, I'm going to farm the mobs here.  You in?"  She says, and I shake my head.  "I wanted to go see the book that the tutorial mentioned."  She stares at me wistfully.  "So do I, actually, but I wanted to level up first, in case there are other people there and I have to fight."  I nod.  "Smart."  I say shortly, finding that the conversation is ending and that we will need to go our separate ways.  "Oh, wait!"  Anna interjects, snagging my hand again and opening up my menu.  A series of waves later, I've sent a friend request to her, which she immediately accepts.  "Now we can see each other again." she says, and I smile softly.  "Don't die, Anna."  I say, patting her on her head, laughing as she pouts.  "You too, you better not die!"  She says, hugging me quickly then firing off a series of icy bolts with her wand to stop the three fireballs heading towards us, before returning with a blast of fire that destroys all three at once.

     I continue my dash towards the dot on my map, a friend made.  Live, she says.  I can do that.

   I run into a few more mobs, but there’s nothing noteworthy.  Everything else are [Red Stalks], which no longer pose a threat now that I am aware of the danger.

 

   I finally catch sight of the ruins as it starts pouring.  Crumbling stone lies in a gathering around a single wooden hut, though when I tap a blade against the door it clangs.  Metal, not wood.  Nice to know.  I push the door open, wary at the fact that it is unlocked.  Glancing in to confirm that no one's inside, I swing the door shut behind me , eager to get out of the rain.

   A giant book lies on a larger oak wood table.  If asked to measure, I'd say that the cover measures 1 meter high and 0.75 meters wide.  It's dark red, leather bound, and the cover is in tatters.  When I step closer I see that it is labeled [The Book].  Torches line the walls, providing low light.

     I flip open the cover carefully.  The first page is blank. The second one starts a table of contents, which continues onto the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh pages.  The sheets are yellow and worn, so I take special care in flipping.  

    The eighth page has words in a rather large font.

     "Welcome to DreamCloud V47.  This book contains a detailed explanation of the creation, history, testing, and active use of the world."

     Huh?  

   "Every session, 5,000 players are born, and set to survive in the world.  There are two ways to survi-"  

      A sharp, painful piercing feeling in my chest makes me yelp and leap away.  Too late, I remember I'm in the house and my back slams into the wall.  A bright glint of light - a weapon!  I raise my left hand to block it before remembering that I put that sword down to flip pages, and the piercing attack stabs through my left hand, but it gives me an opportunity to kick my attacker hard and they stumble back.  I only have my right-hand sword, which I can use ambidextrously, but...

     [Dual-Wielding] sounds like a dream ability, but it has a major weakness that makes others hesitate to choose it.  All your attacks do HALF the damage that a normal sword would do, basically forcing you to land double the hits that [One-Handed] sword users needed to.  And with only one sword in my hand, that negative attribute remained.  

    I glanced at my health bar.  73%, if I had to put it into numbers.  The torchlight flickered across my attacker's face, and my eyes widened. 

     Long, chocolate brown hair, extending down past her shoulders.  Crystal blue eyes, light skin.  Black cloak, red shirt and white skirt underneath it.  Extended down to her side, a silver rapier.  Name?  "Lindsey."

     A rapier is a long, thin sword.  Hers looked to be at least a meter long, with razor-sharp edges.  Funny, I thought that rapiers were used as stabbing weap-

     Her hand flicks out, and only lightning reflexes allows me to parry the blade away from me as it whips in an arc towards my head. 

      "What are you doing?"  I cry out, as a stab nicks my arm and shaves a few hit points off of me.  

      "Didn't you read the board at spawn?”  I vaguely remember sprinting past a poster with a crowd of people surrounding it.  Um...   “The only way to make it to a better world is to be the last survivor!"  She snaps out, as I rapidly parry three cuts.  "If you die, I increase my survival chances!"        "That's wrong!  Today I met someone and we became friends!"  I shout out, sending a powerful slash at her that forces her to step back.  "She didn't try to kill me!"  A stab gets under my guard, cutting my health to 42%.

    "Then she's an idiot!"  Lindsey yells back at  me, circling around me and directing a stab at my head.  I parry, moving to avoid being flanked.  A sweeping slash forces me back, around the book, and she leaps up onto the table and over it to knock me outside.  That's when I realize her plan.

     Lindsey doesn't have much space to maneuver with her rapier, because it's so long.  Inside, at least.  Now, where she has freedom of movement, she can go all out.  My back foot touches against something metal, and I pick it up.  My sword!

    I grin to myself.  Maybe she can go all out, but now I can, too.  

    A series of five quick stabs, aimed at vital spots, easily blocked.  A fast slash under my guard, deflected.  A blur of movement so fast that I barely recognize as an attack connects and drops me to 33%, but she pays for it when I dart to my left and perform a [Double Slant] that she can't quite block, my sword tearing into her shoulder and making her wince before she steps back and stabs, light effects bursting around the tip of her rapier.  A sword skill!

    My right sword is knocked from my hand, and a sweep forces me to retreat.  She picks up my sword, sheaths her rapier, and darts away.  

    "Seriously?"  I yell at her retreating shadow, dashing after her.  She's way faster than I am, to my great surprise, and scales a tree with amazing agility.  I watch my sword flash and disappear, figuring out what she did with a sense of foreboding.

     Lindsey stashed my sword in her inventory.  I can't dual-wield without it, and the only way to get it back is to kill her.  But she was way more powerful than me when I only had one sword.  I could barely keep up with two!  My health is still bordering on low yellow.  At this rate...

    I sprint back into the house.  There must be something.  

    This is heavy.  Ow.

    Lindsey dashes in, just in time to take a direct hit from a thrown [The Book].  I look up from the table I’m hiding behind to laugh for a quick second before my eyes meet the torches on the wall.

    Duh.

    When Lindsey manages to shove the book off of her, she’s immediately forced to jump back to dodge a torch that I hurl at her head, but it nicks her shoulder and I wince at the sound of the flames brushing her skin.  I rip off a second torch and dash at her.  

    The torch acts as a second sword.  Well, it’s so short that it’s a lot more like a dagger, but the function is the same.  I have to be careful, though.  For one, I can’t block with it.  It will likely disintegrate if she scores a direct hit on it.  But, if I land an attack with it, it will likely disorient her enough for me to disarm or kill her.

     I don’t want to kill her...

    Lindsey’s sword scythes through the air and I parry with my sword before lunging with the torch.  She shrieks and leaps back, narrowly dodging the fire.  I regain my balance as she strikes.  This pattern continues, as we rapidly exchange blows.  She’s noticeably hampered by the lack of space, as she can’t do the wide swings she normally uses to drive me back.  She gets a lucky stab and takes out the torch; I pick up another one and swing it at her face, forcing her away.  

     She steps back, allowing her a wide swing, and drives a devastating horizontal slash at me.  At first I think she’s misjudged - her blade is going to hit the torch on the wall and slow it down or hook it.  Then I fully realize the danger.

     I sprint out of the way, as her blade hooks the torch.  Her swing continues, launching the torch to where I previously was.  I’m off balance now, however, and she dashes forward.  With a powerful downward blow, she jars my grip; with another upward slash, my sword is knocked out of my hand.

     Disarmed, I do the only thing I can think of - I slap the blade of her rapier up to deflect it as it comes in for a swing, take a step closer, and kick her in the shin as hard as I can.

      "Ah!"  Lindsey gasps out, and I take the opportunity to grab the hilt of her sword and yank out of her hand, throwing it behind me.  Stepping forward and slamming my hand into her stomach, I mutter the name of the only magical spell I know.

    <Fire Bolt> bursts out through my hand and directly through her.  The resulting and unexpected explosion sends Lindsey through the open doorway and outside, a shriek escaping the girl.  Normally it's weak, unless super-effective.  Having a fireball materialize inside of you is enough to meet that condition.  I had avoided using it during the fight to keep it secret, in case I needed a distraction, but here I use it to end the fight.

    I find her on the ground outside, curled to protect her stomach, her health deep in the red.  A little yellow flame icon hovered next to her name.   Burn.   As I watch, another shard of her health is chipped off, bringing her closer to death.  

    "You may as well finish me off."  Lindsey whispers, "You'll probably get a lot of exp from a player kill."   Water drips down her face; from the rain or from crying, I can't tell.  I kneel down next to her.  

    “No.”  I say.  “How do I cure the burn?”  She doesn’t answer, shivering when my fingers brush the skin of her cheek.  “Lindsey...”  Her health is just a tiny sliver now.

Will not wear off until the burn is treated with a healing item.  I have a healing item.  I quickly dip into my inventory and pull out the bottle that the [Red Stalk] dropped.  [Healing Potion I].  A little glass container with red liquid.  I pop off the cap and force it to her lips.  

     She drinks it.

     I stare in relief as her health slowly climbs out of the red, the burn icon fading away.  She stares at me weakly.  “Why?”  She whispers.  

     I...

     I don’t answer, walking back into the room to pick up my sword and her rapier.  I come out again to find Lindsey on her back, staring up into the rain.  I sit down next to her, placing her weapon gently next to her.  

     “I know that...eventually, I will have to kill someone.  I’ll have to do it if I want to survive.  But...I don’t want to fight more than I have to.  Not other people.  "And to let someone die in front of me, knowing that I could've done something but didn't..."  I flop onto the ground next to her, the downpour slowing down, then stopping abruptly.  We’re both soaked head to toe.  "How could I do that?  What kind of monster would I be to do that?"

    Her hand slips into mine and squeezes.

**     “I’m sorry...I'm so sorry..."  She says softly, just loud enough for me to hear over the pounding rain.  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anna (c) sydneymunchkin  
> Tyler (c) Crystalliced  
> Lindsey (c) Crystalliced
> 
> Beta-read by Giiagriiarie and Ic3_Ph03nix


	4. Floor 1 - Part 3 (Tyler v. Lindsey)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An official duel! And some leveling...

    Lindsey gives me back my sword, and we spend the next three hours reading [The Book], which has miraculously avoided a drenching.  It offers some very helpful tips amidst the history, particularly on dungeons and boss-fighting.  Every boss is found at the end of a dungeon.  Dungeons are themed off the floor and provide a variety of challenges, from tougher mobs to mini-bosses.  They are also filled with loot, and the monsters there provide double experience.  However, dungeon mobs do not respawn.  Every boss has four health bars.  At the depletion of every bar their attack pattern, appearance, weapon, or difficulty changes.  Some bosses can summon mobs, while others use traps or sneak attacks.  Every tenth boss is special, being much tougher.  As a result, though, the loot they drop is often incredibly powerful.  

    There's a lot of other random things we learn.  The 25th floor is special, filled with weak mobs that drop lots of exp and good loot.  Instead of a boss, there's always one legendary quest.  It will require multiple parties and traverse many floors, often taking a very long time to beat.  The reward, though, often transcends the world - the completed quest in world 25 allowed everyone in the world a respawn, even those who were dead.

     And I finish page 8.   If the fiftieth boss is defeated, all survivors will exit the game to move to a paradise server.

    Heaven, basically.  The idea of there being a better place appeals to me, although I know that this book could be a lie, or simply false.  I guess we'll find out.

    The girl next to me shivers suddenly, her cloak still damp.  "Cold?"  I ask, and she nods.  My hand brushes her cheek. 

    "You're freezing!"  I say, hesitating only for a second before reaching downward and unfastening her cloak.  "T-Tyler!"  Lindsey stutters, moving to stop me, but she's way too slow.  I pull the garment off of her.

    "Tyler..."  She says, blush radiating in the low light.  I point an accusing finger at her health; her bar is on the verge of yellow.  "Don't do stupid things like that."

     "You're one to talk!"  She retorts hotly.  It’s then I realize what I did and how she could have interpreted it.  //deadpan//

     She’s already poking something into her menu, and I stare confusedly until a request comes up.

     [Lindsey challenges you to a 50% HP duel!]  I stare at her.  She crosses her arms at me, fiercely glaring at me, and with a bit of a smirk, I hit <Accept>.  

Duel starting in One Minute!

    A dome-shaped forcefield appears, then turns invisible.  Lindsey unsheathes her rapier, murder in her eyes.  I pull out my swords, crouching low into a sprint position.  It's all for show, though.  How can I possibly win this?

    Lindsey’s fast.  Too fast.  Way faster than me.  I can’t effectively kite her.  At the same time, her sword skill is above mine, a rapier being a lightning-fast weapon that will both penetrate my defense and help to disarm me.  And she’s proven that she can swing it opportunistically to disarm me or do damage, or even use the area to her advantage.

    But she doesn’t do a lot of damage with individual attacks.   She has to chain them together.  Speaking of which...I open up my stats.  

    Well, duh.  I’m level 2.  I have three points to put into any stat I want, plus the passive boost from my class.  I put the three points into STR.  My new stats are:  STR 10, DEF 5, AGI 9, MAG 9.  Not bad.

Duel starting in Thirty Seconds!  

    I’ve unlocked some new magic skills.  Two are healing skills, only one of which applies here, <Heal Pulse>.  50% of my max health can be healed in exchange for half of my max mana.  Let's see...750 health and 63 mana.  So I heal 375 health for 31 or 32 mana.  In an hp duel, it could save me a loss.

Duel starting in Fifteen Seconds!

I have some new sword skills.  <Double Thrust> and <X-Cut> have been added to my skills, my [Dual-Wielding] ending up at level 6.  That's it. 

    All of Lindsey's slashes, and her disarming attacks, were all sword skills.  That's how she was seemingly more powerful.  In reality, my STR stat is likely a cut above hers, especially since I just tossed a whole bunch of points into STR.  With all that AGI of hers, there's no way she has anything to throw into STR.  And her magic skills are likely atrocious as well.  I recall slamming her with the <Fire Bolt>.  I almost killed her in one hit.  Yes, it was super effective, but it shouldn't have done so much.  She can't have much defense. 

Five...four...three...two...

     I'm an idiot.  Dual wielding.  The strength is that it can chain sword skills, which I've completely ignored.

Begin!

     Lindsey flies at me, kicking off the ground and moving at an amazing pace.  Her speed has practically multiplied since the last time we've fought!  How did she have the time to level up so much?

    Her direct charge is a feint, but I anticipated it.  She skirts to the left and I lash out with my left hand to cut through empty air.  Too fast to react to, her sword stabs right through my defense and hits me right in the chest.  It doesn't do enough, though, and the basic <Linear> skill only makes her open to an attack.  But when I whip my swords together for a <X-Cut>, she's already sprinted out of range and all I manage to do is nick her arm.  The hit brought me down about seventy health points, though, and they're slow to regen.

     On her next pass, I lunge at Lindsey to put her on the defensive.  She clearly didn't expect such a risky attack, but it works, as I bat her sword aside and stab into her with half of <Double Linear>.  She manages to get away before I can follow up, however, and hits me with a heavy Sword Skill while I'm vulnerable, right through the back for an additional crit.  My sweep at her legs misses, but convinces her to back away after another light hit.  I assess the damage.

    My single stab destroyed about 20% of her health bar.  Her attacks together have brought me down to 57%.  She's obviously put at least one STR point in; her attacks have a noticeable punch.  I don't want to heal yet - it's my biggest advantage and I need to save it.

    Lindsey sprints in and delivers a flurry of attacks, all blocked, before an offensive slash by me draws her off.  I've noticed something.

    I shouldn't have been able to block all those attacks, not at the speed they were delivered.  Or should have been delivered.  My extra STR points are throwing off her attacks.  A single parry ruins all of her combo attacks.  As we rapidly exchange strikes, I notice that I am actually pushing her back steadily.  A final sweep sends her stumbling backwards.

   She hits a transparent forcefield, kicks off of it, and launches herself airborne at my head at a stunning speed.  

    Only quick thinking and quicker reflexes spare me.  My own sword, stabbed upwards to knock her rapier away, scrapes my cheek, but it is so shallow it barely registers as a hit, let alone a finishing attack.  I shove outwards, slamming her arm back into the forcefield.  The impact is so powerful that it stuns her, which gives me the opportunity to stab forward with my left sword in a partial <Double Linear>.  

    She kicks diagonally off the wall to slash at my neck, but I block with my right-handed sword.  My left hand, however, has continued its motion and is now stuck in the invisible shield.  Lindsey doesn't give me the chance to pull it out, and begins a series of three stabs which forces me to let go and back away, before she yells, "Fire Bolt!"

     Her left hand launches a burning shard at me.  Her MAG skill must be terrible, because when I dodge and it hits the ground, there isn't even an explosion.  It has, however, bought her the time she needs to pull out my sword from the forcefield.

    No point hiding it anymore.  "Heal Pulse!  Fire Bolt!"  The abilities take effect, draining my mana to a tenth of its maximum.  <Heal Pulse> kicks me back to full health, and <Fire Bolt> is blocked when she crosses the two swords she wields and successfully ripostes it, shattering the spell.  In doing so, she gives away a small piece of crucial information.

    She can't use Sword Skills with my blade.  Otherwise, she would have when she blocked my magical attack.  Her rapier shined with a purple light, but my sword remained dull gray.  It should not be hard to disarm that sword, then.  But...

    We begin a deadly dance, where she uses both of her weapons to maximum effect.  I didn't think it would be possible, but she attacks at a significantly quicker pace than I do, revealing the flaw in my fighting style.  Without AGI, you can't chain as well as she is, using her rapier to break my defense while using my sword to compliment her own.  Lindsey slashes up with her rapier in a <Vertical>, which I barely counter with my <Double Vertical>.  The motion is weaker and awkward without two swords.  Without a second driving force behind my attack, my power takes a noticeable dip.  Without my high STR stat I would have no chance at all.  

    My <Double Horizontal> smashes into her weaker left blade, coming very, very close to disarming her.  She frowns as she stabs my shoulder with a <Linear> before jumping back and hurling my sword at my stomach.

    I dodge it while blocking the predictable stab at my throat with my right sword.  The thrown weapon stabs deeply into the wall.  Just as my mana regens to 25, I call out a <Fire Bolt>.  But this time, I aim at her feet.  The explosion creates a cloud of dust that masks my next movements.  I sprint to the left, placing two hands on my sword, and swing at her as hard as I can.

    Lindsey slashes down, too late, with her own <Slant>, but it can't compare to my baseball swing.  Her rapier goes flying some ten meters into the sky before landing flat on the ground, far away from us.  We both glance at it before she sprints towards it.

  Too slow.

  My thrown sword stabs right through her leg, and she goes down.  I jump over her and scoop up her rapier, holding it carefully.  Twenty meters away, she pulls out the blade embedded in her thigh and stands up shakily, the wound closing within seconds.

    I should have the advantage.  The lightness of her weapon should help with my lowered AGI while benefitting from my high STR.  On the flip side, Lindsey's low STR will make it tough for her to fight.  A practice slash with her rapier makes me grin at how easily I can swing it before dashing towards her with a stab.  She deflects it, and immediately I feel the tremble rush up my arms.

      This weapon is going to break.  

      Can't do anything about it, her- no, MY blade is swinging down at my back and I twist forward to block it, a <Fire Bolt> hastily created under my breath in anticipation of the rapier shattering.

    It does, but my attack throws off her aim and the flaming attack hits her shoulder, knocking her into the air.

     She hits the ground as her health drops to hover just past the halfway mark, while her left hand quickly swipes through her menu, searching.  I don't have a weapon, so I dash over to her and stomp on her left hand, forcing her to cry out and drop my sword before I pick it up quickly and stab down.

     A second rapier materializes in her hand, and she knocks me away, back to the forcefield where my second sword still protrudes from the energy barrier.   

    Another one..?

    “Everyone brings a backup weapon with them on trips!”  Lindsey yells at me, before swinging at my head and nearly shearing it off.  The pure force of the attack makes me slam into the wall backwards, then stumbling forward.  There’s no time to react to anything.  Her third swing is a <Vertical>, which I deflect at a cost.  It knocks me into the air, open and vulnerable to attack.  A stab is prepared as my foot finds the hilt of my sword.

   I kick off and leap over her as her <Linear> attack is thrusted forward and slams into the wall.

   Land on two feet.  Swing my sword and stab backwards.   
Tyler is the winner of the 50% duel!  Restoring health and mana to original levels...

   As the winner of the duel, I got half of Lindsey's money, a lot of EXP, and bragging rights.  The only thing I got to use, however, was the EXP, as Lindsey made me pay back all her gold, the world currency, and her distraught face prevented my conscience from uttering a word.

   "What's your AGI stat?"  I ask awkwardly, following her after she stalked back inside the house.

     "Sixteen..."  She finally mutters, glaring holes into the wall.  My eyes widen as I check my own stats.  Level 4.  I quickly toss in some points to my stats.  1,100 HP, 96 Mana, 13 STR, 8 DEF, 14 AGI and MAG.  I really need to get my speed up...Lindsey proved that dual-wielding was best with higher AGI.  Now that my STR and DEF are decent, I can start focusing on it more.  

    "You threw my sword into the barrier near the end of the fight.  Why didn't you keep using it?"  She hesitates, as if debating whether or not to tell me the answer.  

     "It left my side too weak."  I recall nearly disarming her with a Sword Skill.  "Eventually I was going to depend on it and it would fail me."  I figured.  "I can't believe you broke my rapier, though."  

    "It was about to break anyways!"  I protest, silenced when she shoots a dirty look my way.  "I could've gotten a partial refund from the vendors."

    "Would it have been more or less than the 50% I won from you?"  I ask, putting the metaphorical icing on the cake.  She huffs and goes back to ignoring me.

     After a few minutes of silence, I walk outside to check the time and am greeted with a wonderful sight.

     "Anna!"  I yell, and upon hearing the voice the girl stares around confusedly before her eyes land on me.  "Tyler!"  She calls back, and runs toward me, launching three slow-moving blue orbs at a nearby [Red Stalk].  When they hit, there's a slight "pop" sound before the plant shatters into glass.  A second mob is slaughtered with a <Fire Bolt>, and Anna crushes a group of three [Red Stalks] in front of her with a blast of fire, like a large flamethrower.

    Wow.  Wowowowow.

    But all of that is put to shame as a [Large Red Stalk] unfurls from the ground and she points her wand skyward.  A rumbling sound, then a lightning bolt drops from the sky into her wand, and ricochets right into the mob, exploding with a terrific crash.  When the dust clears, the mob is gone.

    Lindsey comes up behind me to see the source of the noise.  Upon seeing Anna, she dashes past me, drawing her sword in preparation for attack.  "Lindsey, wai-!"  Anna reacts faster than I do, sending a quick series of blue rays at her.

    To Lindsey's credit, she dodges three before her left foot is nicked by a beam, and the next hit freezes her foot to the ground.  "Anna, wait!"  I yell, as she charges an unknown spell.  She breaks her concentration to glance up at me, and seeing me sprint towards her, deactivates the wand.  

    "A friend of yours?"  She asks conversationally, and I glance at Lindsey trying to break the ice with her rapier.  "Hm, yeah, pretty much.  I mean, besides her violent tendencies, she's cool."  Lindsey glares up at me, kicking free from the ice clinging to her feet.  "Do you realize how valuable the information in that book is?"  Lindsey snaps at me.  Anna's eyes light up and she dashes inside.  Lindsey runs to follow her but I grab her arm.  "Stop!"  I cry out, and she goes limp, allowing me to drag her away.  When I decide that she can be trusted to stay, I let her go.

    She immediately sprints to the house and I have to chase after her.  She is, of course, much too fast, but as she's about to dart in, a blue ball is fired from the inside of the hut, dropping her to the ground.  A second later, I catch up to notice that she's paralyzed, and struggling to get up.

    "Idiot."  I say, helping her up as the status effect wears off, "Cool off."  Lindsey fumes silently before sheathing her sword.  Inside, we find Anna running her hand over the cover of the book reverently.

    "I'm...gonna need some time with this."  She murmurs, still absorbed in [The Book].  "Go farm levels or something."  Anna picks up the book carefully and brings it to a corner of the room, where she opens it and begins reading.

    "Yup.  Let's go!"  I say, dragging Lindsey with me.  Outside, she attempts to plant her feet to stop her momentum.  My STR is higher than hers, though, so she accomplishes exactly nothing.  Fifty feet later, I drop my grip on her arm.  "I'm not your mother."  I say, crossing my arms, "But I will stop you from trying to hurt my friend."  At this, Lindsey stares down at the ground, all the fight going out of her.  "Okay." she whispers, and that's the only word I'm able to get out of her for the next fifteen hours.  We run back and forth across a two-hundred meter stretch, farming [Red Stalks].  The level grind is most beneficial for Lindsey, who can take one down in an average of nine seconds by darting behind it and stabbing it multiple times in critical spots.  In terms of pure speed, I estimate her sprint at 20mph.  Amazing.

     My strategy for the [Red Stalks] is simple, easy, and faster than Lindsey's.  A single <Fire Bolt> will wipe out any plant.  In between mana regeneration periods she wipes out whole groups of mobs with her rapier, eventually unlocking a powerful Sword Skill that begins insta-killing [Red Stalks] with single hits, not even requiring a critical.  The drawback, though, is obvious.

      A fireball connects with her rapier as she's trapped in its delay.  Let me explain.

     Every Sword Skill has a delay.  Some are so minute, you won't notice it.  But during the delay, you can not move until it ends.  The most powerful skills have longer delays, and thus heavier periods of vulnerability.

     I catch Lindsey, sprinting forward as she's thrown back from the explosion.  "Are you okay?"  Her health is just over 40%.  She didn't have the time to dodge that..!  But she just lifts herself up and runs back without a word, leaping up to stab downward onto the [Large Red Stalk] and finish it off.

     "Heal Flare!"  I yell out, pointing an open palm at Lindsey, and moments later a pink flare hits her and her health begins to rise back up.  I pull out my second sword and sprint towards her, where she's engaged with a group of six [Red Stalks].  Firing off two <Icicle Spears> in succession to counter the wave of fireballs, she kites them and stabs them all in the back with basic <Linears>, killing them within seconds.  I grab her arm, holding her back as she makes to run to another group.  

    "Stop!"  I cry out.  "Stop!"  She fiercely tries to extricate her arm, glaring at me with anger that makes me falter before clenching her hand around her rapier and stabbing me through the arm.

    The shock and pain of her unexpected attack forces me to let go, and she runs towards the mobs, vaulting over a set of fireballs to stab them all quickly with that powerful Sword Skill.

    Just one problem.  The attacks are now converging on my location, and I'm still on my knees, hardly positioned to run.  I cross my swords, hoping that they will absorb the brunt of the explosion.

    A rumble, then a blinding flash.  A bolt of lightning hits the ground a few meters in front of me, absorbing and destroying all the fireballs.  Anna walks up past me, staring at where Lindsey is dancing around the fireball blitz to stab all of the plants through the head and using the convergent blasts to have them destroy themselves.  

     "You can't block that kind of attack, idiot.”  Anna holds out her hand, and I gratefully accept it.  We both look to where Lindsey’s destroying the last of a group of ten [Red Stalks].  

     “She’s insanely powerful now.”  She hums in agreement.  “We should stop her before she burns out.”

     It turns out we don’t need to, because as Lindsey turns to face me and catches sight of Anna, she covers the twenty-meter gap in about three seconds. 

     “Duel, now.”  She tells Anna, who glances at me as if asking if she should accept the duel or not.  I shrug.  “Sure.”  Anna says, “But if you lose, I’m keeping the money.”  Lindsey nods.  “And vice-versa.”

Duel starting in sixty seconds!

**      As I sigh, I realize that I’m now the weakest player in our little group.  I guess I should start grinding those [Red Stalks] with the new magical skill I just unlocked...  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anna (c) sydneymunchkin  
> Tyler (c) Crystalliced  
> Lindsey (c) Crystalliced
> 
> Beta-read by Giiagriiarie and Ic3_Ph03nix


	5. Floor 1 - Part 4 (Field Boss Fight!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [The Book] is a little more sinister than anyone could have imagined...

  Level 9.  That’s the level I manage before a firework informs me of the duel’s completion.  I check over all my new abilities, which I previously had not had the chance to.  ’m in no hurry to head back to the duel site; my premonition tells me that Lindsey lost and is now trying to kill Anna.

    I’ve unlocked three new spells; <Lightning Orb>, <Icicle Spear>, and <Fire Wave>.  When I hit the <?> button on the top of the skills, it shows me a little video that shows me what the skills look like.  <Lightning Orb> are those slow-moving, homing projectiles that Anna used against the [Red Stalks], <Icicle Spear> was the spell used to freeze Lindsey in place, and <Fire Wave> is simply an intense flamethrower spread of flames.

    After tossing some points into my DEF, my new stats are:  1750 HP, 166 MANA, 20 STR, 11 DEF, 34 AGI, 24 MAG.  I’ve also unlocked a whole bunch of sword skills.  <Combo Strikes> \- 3 consecutive and separate horizontal slashes.  <Overhead Strike> \- Dual jumping slashes that do extra damage.  <Viper Strikes> \- the ability to attack from five sides before a powerful stab.  <Flare> \- Igniting your swords for extra reach and damage.  <Glacial Reinforcement> \- Increase damage, durability, and resist fire attacks.  And last, but not least, <Lightning Misdirection>, which does a variety of things but drains lots of mana.  This should really help with my [Dual-Wielding] skill, since I’ve been feeling that it is too weak recently.  It’s finally caught up to the level curve, it seems.

    I hear some arguing as I approach the wooden house.  Three seconds later, a flurry of lightning bolts rain from the sky, shaking the ground.  I sprint towards the direction of the bolts, relief coursing through me as I see Anna grinning and Lindsey looking awed.  A second later, one of the largest trees in the forest creaks and sways unsteadily before it comes crashing down to the ground.  

    “Haha!  I told you so!  500 gold!”  Anna yells jubilantly, Lindsey pouting, but doing as told.  I clear my throat and the girls whirl around to face me.  

    “I expect this from Lindsey-”  I say, gesturing at the destruction around me, “But Anna?  What are you doing?”  Lindsey throws a small rock at my head and I casually slap it out of the air.  

    “Oh, come on!  Just because I like books doesn’t mean I can’t have some fun sometimes!”  Lindsey stifles a laugh as I raise an eyebrow.  “You were reading that thing for eight hours!"  I exclaim.  Anna shrugs.  “Well, at least I finished it.”  Wait...

    Lindsey agrees with me, turning to face Anna.  “Seriously?”  The red-haired girl blinks.  “It’s not that big.”  At this point Lindsey sprints into the house, and I mean  sprint .  It literally takes about two seconds for her to cover the fifteen meters to the structure and disappear.  

    “What the-”  I turn to Anna.  “Just how high is her AGI stat?”  Anna thinks about the answer for a second.  “During our duel, it was 66.”  My jaw is in serious danger of hitting the ground.  “But, she did get the [Sprint] Passive, so that makes her look way faster than she is.”  I nod.  “How do you get a passive skill though?  I’ve never heard of it.”  Anna opens up her skills menu and shows it to me.  “Here, look.  You can choose a passive skill at level 10.”  She points at a gray block on her menu.  “Since I’m not that high yet, I can’t actually choose one yet.  But Lindsey’s level 12.”  I almost faint.  

     “By the way, who won the duel?”  I ask Anna, who chuckles happily.  “I did.  She didn’t even touch me.”  I gawk.  “How?  She’s so fast!”  Anna smiles coyly.  “I have my ways.”  I want to continue my interrogation, but we’re interrupted. 

     “This book isn’t big?!  Anna, are you insane?”  Lindsey yells out at us, carrying [The Book] with her.  Anna whirls around and panics.

     "Lindsey!  No!  Drop it!"  Her final step carries her out the doorway.

     An explosion.

 

     "Lindsey!"  I scream.  A giant monster grows out of the house, towering seven meters in the air.  On top of it, red health bars appear, stacked on one after another.  Five total.

     "Hold it off!"  I shout to Anna, who nods before firing a laser-like ice-cold beam at the giant mob's feet, who now has a name.  [The Omniscient Book Of Knowledge].  Feels rather redundant, if you ask me, but who am I to argue?  I sprint towards past the mob and over to where we last saw Lindsey.

    What if she was killed?  That explosion completely destroyed the hut...I remember tapping the wall and realizing that it was metal disguised as wood.  Lindsey...

    A flash of movement, and a collapsing pile of shattered tiles.  

    "Ugh..."  Lindsey groans, her health just a tiny shard of red.  I quickly reach into my inventory and pull out a [Healing Potion I].  "Here, drink this!"  She accepts it without hesitation, her health slowly rising.  She activates a <Heal Pulse> to quickly push herself into the green, before standing up shakily.  "Let's go, we have to help Anna!"  I blink once and nod.  Lindsey kicks off the ground and practically teleports out of the rubble.  I take a different approach, running behind the boss and leaping up to bring myself within range of the bosses' back.  <Flare> and <Overhead Strike> are activated concurrently to do critical and super effective damage to the boss as I slash right through it.  A second <Overhead Strike> tears into the trunk of the boss before a leafy arm picks me from the ground.  I slash wildly, <Flare> wearing off a few seconds later.  The mob launches me forward.

     A blue ray hits me in the leg, halting all my momentum and causing me to fall from five meters up.  Lindsey catches me.

    "Thanks."  I say breathlessly, and she nods tersely.  Anna fires off a series of <Fire Bolts> at the monster.  I stare at the thing.

    A massive oak tree, with evil, glowing red eyes set into the bark.  4 huge wooden arms, adorned with leaves.  Floating on top of it, [The Book].  It takes a step towards us, the ground shaking as its foot comes down.  Anna runs back towards us.  "How are we going to fight this thing?"  She gasps out.  We all turn to look at [The Omniscient Book of Knowledge].  Anna's barrage of fire and my attacks brought its health down one bar, leaving four left.  

     “Just keep hitting it with fire, Anna.  Lindsey and I will circle it, keep its attention, and I’ll try to get some critical hits in with <Flare>.  They both nod.  

     I sprint around to the right, Anna creating some sort of wind aura around her, obviously with a plan.  I sheathe a sword and charge a <Fire Bolt>, focusing carefully on it.  Eventually, the light orange shard in my hand turns a bright white.  

      If you take the time and energy to focus a magical attack, you can amplify its effectiveness.  I release the <Fire Bolt> as the giant mob turns around to target Lindsey. 

     A shattering sound rings out, and for a scared-stiff moment I think it’s because Lindsey made a fatal mistake.  On closer inspection, though, I can see one of the giant leafy arms shatter, my fire attack having sawed right through it.  It turns to me before taking a series of critical hits from Lindsey’s powerful stab attack.  

     “Get back, guys!”  Anna calls out.  We both glance back before sprinting away.  She’s charged about six <Fire Bolts> and is in the process of combining them.

     “Fwshhhppp...BANG!”

     The whirlwind aura explodes, the airstream massively amplifying the fireball.  Basically, she charged her <Fire Bolts> like how I used the one to rip off an arm from the boss.  And she combined SIX of them.  

     But that’s not it.  Then, she used the air to multiply the velocity and intensity of the massive large fireball, dealing even more damage.  A massive explosion rings out as the <Fire Bolts> flash to the boss in an instant and erupt, sending terrain and dirt flying everywhere.  

     The smoke clears.

     Two bars.

     The freaking boss still has two bars of health left.  But that’s not the worst thing.

     “I’m out of Mana.”  Anna pants.  “It’ll take five minutes to recharge.”  

     The boss itself has transformed, like [The Book] warned us.  It now has a much, much bulkier exterior.  Armor, I realize.  But that’s not it.  As we watch, horrified, the boss expands and dirt rips up from the ground to cover it.  Now the mob is truly humanoid, rather than tree-like.  

      [The Awakened Giant of Knowledge] roars, towering twenty meters in the air, looking pissed.  Anna flinches.  

      “We need to run.  Now!”  Lindsey looks genuinely afraid, taking a step back as the boss stomps its foot, creating a small crater.  The four wooden arms collapse off the boss, to be replaced with two giant rock arms.  A massive stone sword hilt ruptures the ground in front of the monster, and with a mighty shout [The Awakened Giant Of Knowledge] rips it out of the ground, pulling a thirty-meter sword with it.

      “This wasn’t meant to be defeatable.  Not by us.”  Anna says.  We stare at it, which nearly proves fatal.  Lindsey grabs both of our arms and activates a full-out sprint, dashing away from the boss as he swings his sword, tearing a massive gash in the ground.  Under the cover of the treeline, I plant my feet to interrupt her movement, stopping her suddenly.  “Tyler, are you insan-”

     “We’ve come this far.  We can’t stop now!”  I glare at the boss.  “Nothing’s undefeatable.”  Anna shakes her head.  “We’re going to die if we fight that thing.”  A mighty shaking of the ground warns us of the bosses’ approach.  “Retreat, at least for now.  We can always come ba-”

    I can’t hear her anymore.  I’ve already sprinted in the direction of the boss.

    My mind is racing.  A frontal assault will surely fail.  That insane sword will one-shot me for sure.  It has extremely thick earthen armor protecting it from fire attacks.  It’s also insanely huge.  How do you fight such a thing?

    Simple.  Break the sword, or break the armor.  Take out the offensive or defensive power.  Don’t fight it head-on.  Don’t get hit.  

    I quickly scale a tree, and narrowly dodge the sword sweep that follows as it wipes out a line of trees.  

    A flash of movement, and Lindsey appears next to me.  

    “You’re really going to do this?”  She asks me, and I nod.  “Anna went back to get some help.  It’s smart.  She’ll regen all her mana by the time she gets here.  Otherwise, she’s useless.”  I nod.   

     “So, what’s the plan?”  Something’s off here.  As we split to avoid a second slash, I rack my brains to try and figure out what.  

     “Tyler!  What’s the plan?”  Ah, that’s it.

     “Since when have I been the leader?”  I call back, and she leaps back towards me.  “Just now.  What are we going to do against this thing?”  

     “Break the sword.”  I decide, and her eyes widen.  “Um, how?”  I shrug.  “Magic, I guess.  We need to figure out how to weaken the sword!”  

     On the next downward sweep from the golem, Lindsey and I leap onto the dull blade, grabbing hold tightly.  “This is insane!”  Lindsey yells at me, and I shrug.  Instead of breaking the sword, why not break the arms?  Earth over stone.  “I have an idea!” 

     “I certainly hope so!”  She shoots back at me, as the sword is lifted off the ground and we find ourselves twenty meters in the air, as the golem lifts the stone blade up.  We drop directly onto the rock head, grabbing hold to the cracked earth as the giant shakes his head in an attempt to dislodge us.  We jam our swords into the ground in an attempt to hang on.  Eventually, it stops - the golem has locked on to new targets.  

    “Tyler?  Lindsey?  What the hell are you guys doing up there?”  Anna stares up at us, bringing three people with her.  All of them guys, two shield-wielders and one guy with some sort of huge sword that he holds in one hand.  I can’t make out details from this height, though.  

    “Don’t mind them.”  One of the guys says, “They’re just hanging around.”  His friend with an odd emerald shield laughs while the other tank player listens intently to Anna before raising his shield up to block as the [The Awakened Giant of Knowledge] raises his massive blade, bringing his arm within reach.   I fire a series of charged <Icicle Spears> to pierce the armor with icy coldness.  It slows the swing crucially, enough to allow the shield-user below to block the hit.  But that wasn’t the goal.

    “Now!”  I cry, and Lindsey pushes all her mana into me with <Mana Regeneration>.  

One...two...three...four!

    Four <Fire Bolts> combine, then, as I pour my focus into it, glows white.  

    “Fire Bolt!”  

    The blast tears a gaping hole through the giant’s arm, and it drops the sword.

    What we did was use my charged ice attacks to lower the temperature of the earth to make it brittle, then launch a powerful, superheated fireball to blitz through it, shattering the earthly armor and dealing direct damage.  What we don’t anticipate, however, is the giant using his left hand to slap us off of its shoulders like flies.  

    Anna’s precise aim, again, saves us.  A <Ice Beam> shoots us out of the air, a second one halting our momentum a mere foot off the ground.  Both of us down health potions to heal the hefty damage from the laser-like beams.  It certainly beats being thrown into the atmosphere, however.  

    Lindsey, however, wasn’t as lucky.  The 10% chance of the [Freeze] status condition takes effect and she is petrified.  She’s the only one unable to dodge when the golem lets out an enraged shout and lunges at us, grabbing her in a large fist to where only her head and feet stick out.

    “Lindsey!”  I scream, and she tries to say something back, but the giant clenches his fist and she lets out a pained cry instead.  I look around.  How to get up?

    “Boost him, Raffy!”  Anna shouts at one of the shield-users wearing some sort of purple long coat.  He glances at me before hefting his shield for me to use as a springboard.  

    “Jump over me, Tyler.”  I figure out her plan and do as she says.  A sudden force propels me up, air whipping past me as she creates her wind aura again and magnifies it, launching me into the air and directly over the boss’ arm.  

     I bring my swords down as hard as I can on the vulnerable elbow joint, using <Overhead Strikes>.  Perhaps my strength is amplified by my desperation, as the blades both shatter, but stab deeply into the limb and nearly sever it in two.  The golem refuses to drop Lindsey, however, and another squeeze of his hand elicits a shriek from the girl.  

    My blood boils.  I kick off the arm and jump straight at the stupid giant’s head, as it roars.  

    “Tyler!”  Lindsey screams, just before I think, “Fire Wave!” and the world goes black as the mob’s mouth closes around me.

**  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler (c) Crystalliced  
> Lindsey (c) Crystalliced  
> Anna (c) sydneymunchikin  
> Raffy (c) raffy70
> 
> Beta-read by Giiagriiarie and Ic3_Ph03nix


	6. Floor 1 - Part 5 (Tyler v. Anna!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A long-awaited fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is dungeon-exploring. Hopefully after that is the first boss fight.

   Falling.

     That’s the first sensation I feel.

     “SLAP!”

     “Don’t you dare die on me, Tyler!”  Lindsey screams, as I open my eyes.  She springs off of the collapsing giant to land in the leafy embrace of a nearby tree. 

     The boss, missing a head, hits the ground before shattering into shards.

     We’re both breathing hard as a window pops up in front of us.  I stare at the numbers, wide-eyed.

That’s a lot of EXP... I check my stats.  “No way...”  Lindsey gasps, staring at my menu.

     I’m level 16.  That one boss pushed me up 7 levels.  Just how powerful was this thing?  I gently slide out of Lindsey’s arms, glancing at my other rewards.  200,000 gold.  A whole line of items, some of which look extremely powerful.  

     “Tyler!  Lindsey!  Come down here!”  Anna shouts out, and we both look down to where she stares up at us, the three guys gawking behind her.  Falling gracefully is a bit of a challenge, but I manage.  Noticing my extremely low HP, I use a <Heal Pulse> before drinking one of the [Healing Potion I’s] I have, not in any danger of running out.  

      “Hey, thanks for helping us out.”  I direct these words at the three guys, who are still looking around in awe.  “Uh, we didn’t do anything-” Raffy says, but I wave them off, paying them 5,000 gold.  

     “Oh my god!  Dude!  We’re rich!”  The swordsman of the trio says, exchanging high-fives with his group members, before turning to me and shaking my hand.  “Thanks!”  I study him.

     “Phoenix.”  Tall, dark brown eyes, spiky black hair.  Weirdly has a mustache.  I mean, I haven’t met many people yet, but everyone I’ve seen so far have younger avatars.  His character looks to be about twenty-five, while everyone in this clearing would be around seventeen.  Eh, his choice, I guess.  

     “Haha, it’s nothing.  Wait-”  I search through my inventory and find what I’m looking for.  I toss a [Two-Handed Reinforced Iron Broadsword] at him, which he attempts to snatch out of the air but fails.  I guess my STR stat is stronger than his.  “Um...”  he says, at a loss, before opening his menu and throwing in some points to his STR stat.  That done, he picks up the giant blade with ease.  “Wow...”  

     “Holy crap.”  This comes from “Tony”, who is practically a shorter, younger version of Phoenix, minus the mustache.  Phoenix studies the sword, before taking a giant swing at a nearby tree, slashing through it and the one behind it in one powerful attack.  We watch, amazed, as both of them fall to the ground one after another.  

     “This is incredible.  How can I repay you for this?”  I shrug.  “You don’t.  It’s my reward for you, since you didn’t really get anything in the boss fight.”  

     “But...we didn’t really-”

     Lindsey smirks.  “Just take it.  He’s not going to back off.”  The trio look at each other, then nod as a group.  “Thanks so much.  If you need anything, just ask.”  Before they take off, everyone friends each other, then they leave to go farm more of the [Red Stalks].  

     Lindsey mutters something about checking the river in the forest and takes off, leaving me with Anna.  

     “Oh, right.  I wanted to let you know, you can use magic while your swords are equipped.”  The redhead tells me, and I turn to look at her.  I read it in [The Book].  Basically, you need to concentrate on the spell in your head, much like how you would do it with a wand, and release the power through your sword.”  An experimental <Fire Bolt> confirms this, and Anna hastily puts out the resulting fire with a <Icicle Spike>.  “Huh, neat.  Thanks.  Also, I wanted to ask you something.”  I tell her, and she nods.

     “What level are you now?”  I ask, genuinely curious.  I know she did tons of damage, especially with that fireball attack, and based off the experience I received, she must be pretty high now.

     “Level 15.”  She says, then laughs.  “My MAG skill is 212.”

     I...

     “Also, I want to duel you, if you don’t mind.  We can do money-back.”  Anna says, laughing at my dumbfounded expression, “I just want to see who would win.”  

      I think she’s assuming that her level is over mine.  Or is she that confident in her magic stat?  Scratch that, she has every reason to be confident in that stat.  212...That’s freaking insane!  But her other stats must be dirt low...

     One or two shots.  That’s all I need to take her down.  I can win this.  As I watch her drag the passive skill [Mana Pool] into her skill slot, I’m suddenly not so sure.

     My current stats are 2800 HP, 299 MANA, 30 STR, 20 DEF, 50 AGI, and 45 MAG.  My [Dual Wielding] level is 64, apparently not enough to unlock anything new.  My magic stat, however, has unlocked [Earth Wall] and [Ice Beam] for me.  

    In other words, nothing particularly helpful.  With her super-powerful magical attacks, there’s absolutely no point in fighting her with magic, unless it’s a charged attack versus her normal one, in which case I might be able to negate her attack.  I have a decent amount of mana, now.  Could I just spam charged <Fire Bolts> to deflect the smaller, quicker projectiles she uses and dodge all her larger spells?

    She's too smart for that.  No, I need to figure out a way to get to her. 

Duel starting in sixty seconds!

I absolutely can't get hit.  While I have bolstered my defenses, nothing can protect against her absolutely insane MAG stat.  Magic amplifies the power of spells.  Taking a hit will destroy me.

Duel starting in thirty seconds!

    The borders.  Maybe I can use it to my advantage, somehow.  I remember my duel with Lindsey.  We fought in a flat arena.

    This duel is different.  We’re in a small clearing, but there are many, many trees around us.  My plan is set, then.  I’m sure that most of the trees are within the boundary of the duel.  The problem is, what if she uses the foliage as cover too?  Hm...

Duel starting in fifteen seconds!

I open up a menu that shows me a list of passive skills.  I quickly drag [Searching] from the list and drop it in, granting me a brand new active skill.  [Detective Mode] lets me see the recent footprints of nearby players.  If I use the cover of the trees to hide while tracking her, I have a shot at winning.  Across me, Anna frowns, noticing me selecting the skill, but at this distance there’s no way she can make out the fine print of the words.  

Five...four...three...two...ONE!

 I rocket to the side, and it’s a good thing I do.  Anna’s <Fire Bolt> rockets past me, a bright white.  How did she charge it so-

     A second one appears in my vision, and I dodge right and quickly activate <Glacial Reinforcement> while using a sideways slash to dissipate it.  

      The heat flashes past, but takes something with it.

      My left-handed sword has been melted in half.  But...

      “212 MAG stat plus <Whirlwind> boosting...Did you really think that was going to work?”  Anna grins triumphantly down at me, from where she is hovering slightly with the help of the wind aura.  A third <Fire Bolt> whips past me and I counter with a <Ice Beam>.  This time, though, I’ve spent a few seconds focusing the laser-like beam and what comes out is a pure energy attack that dissipates the flame and Anna is forced to counter with a series of <Fire Bolts> one after another to stop the beam, throwing up an <Earth Wall> for good measure.  That’s fine by me.  I charge a second <Ice Beam>, waiting about twelve seconds before I leap up onto the <Earth Wall> and create my own on top of it, towering fifteen or so meters in the air.  Anna looks up at me and fires off a massive blast of flame that I negate with my powerful ice attack.  One thing’s for sure - she’s definitely expending much more Mana than I am.

      She collapses her wall, sending mine falling to pieces as well, but she sends an electric ball up to hover around my height.  I jump down as it explodes, sending lightning balls everywhere.  Charging a simple <Fire Bolt> on the way down, I sprint around the wall to send it flying, but she counters with her own <Fire Bolt>, amplified with both a charge and the <Whirlwind’s> effect.   They both explode, the blast closer to me.  I dart to the left to get under the tree cover, using the smoke from the attacks to hide my escape.  Then I begin formulating a plan.  

      She glances around before running into the middle of the clearing.  Smart.  Rather than risk an ambush with my superior AGI, she’s chosen to get into the middle so she has a longer time to prepare before defending against me.  That’s fine.

    I charge three <Earth Walls>, focusing on their image in my mind to make them larger before releasing them.  They expand quickly in front of me, towering about ten meters high and thirty meters long combined.  More importantly, though, are the trees that were carried with them on top.

     My plan is simple, obvious, but hopefully effective.  A series of six <Fire Bolts> slams into the trunks of the plants lifted up from the ground, sending them collapsing into the clearing and drastically reducing the area in it.  A shriek informs me that Anna has figured out what I am trying to do.  I quickly collapse the <Earth Walls> and sprint away from them as an insanely powerful <Fire Bolt> smashes into the walls and explodes, sending dirt and flame everywhere as I duck a projectile tossed at my head. 

     I leap up into the cover of the trees and survey the arena.  

     Anna’s using a series of charged <Icicle Spears> to freeze over the fires, to try and stop the flame to give her room to move.  Perfect.  

     She glances at the trees, then lifts her wand and mutters under her breath.  Oh no.

     I quickly drink a [Healing Potion I] and a [Mana Potion I], one of six dropped by the boss.  A second later, Anna completes her spell and the earth shakes under me.

    An understatement, I realize, as my perch collapses to the ground, one of, uh...all the trees.  Anna just leveled the entire dome of forest in our duel arena.  Locking eyes with me, she quickly activates her wind aura before sending a series of hasty <Fire Bolts> in my direction.  

     I sprint in a circle as the brush behind me catches fire, and throw myself back as an explosion rings out in front of me.  Alright, fine.  Try this!

     <Ice Beam> is charged and sent through the flame at where I think Anna is, clearing a path that I sprint on.  <Icicle Spikes> freeze the dry ground left in the clearing, transforming the terrain into an ice field. 

     I sprint across the ice, my speed amplified.  There we go.  I blast off at a speed matching Lindsey’s normal run, skating across the ice and firing off a charged <Ice Beam> at Anna, who is caught off guard, the laser scraping her shoulder.  A hit!  

     She ignores the hit, charging something instead.  I sprint at her, firing a weaker <Fire Bolt> that she also ignores.  I preemptively throw up an <Earth Wall> in an attempt to deflect the attack I know is forthcoming and leap onto it, firing off a <Fire Bolt>.  Useless. 

     A little electrical projectile stabs right through me, locking up all my limbs and sending me crashing through the ground in front of her.  Paralysis!  A hastily charged <Ice Beam> in her hand, I break through the status effect, just long enough to fling my half-melted sword at her head, which throws her off long enough for me to shake off the heaviness in my limbs and dart away, her spell carving a hole in the ground I had been recently lying on.

     I sprint to the side to avoid another electrical bullet projectile and shoot off an <Icicle Spear>, which is destroyed by a <Fire Bolt>.  Her mistake.  The cooldown it has gives me the chance to sprint in-

     Just as a flaming sword erupts from her empty left hand and slashes at me.  I leap back to avoid the flame but take a minor hit in the process.  I activate <Flare> as an afterthought, knowing that a hit from the blazing sword will likely cleave through mine.  While <Flare> is slowly eating at my durability, at least there’s the chance that it will help prevent some of the durability loss from Anna’s hits.  We study each other.

     Her blade wavers.  “You’re not used to using that, are you?”  She forces a laugh.  “Your sword isn’t going to hold up, even if I can’t use this.”  She’s right, as usual.  But...What if...

    Three hits.  I need to try to end this in three hits, or my sword will shatter.  

    I focus on the image of a massive, towering wall.  We continue circling each other, and I know she’s waiting for me to strike.  Fine.  I can do that.

    When I am sure that my <Earth Wall> is as charged as it can get, I lunge forward.  Predictably, she aims a strike under my guard - my wall blasts out of the ground and carries us both straight up.  Finally, I have the terrain advantage.

    Until she removes or changes the wall, I control the ground.  We’re both an insane thirty meters up in the air, but what makes the most difference is that she is completely caught off guard, and I lunge forward.

    She recovers just in time to launch some sort of attack that pulverizes the earth in front of her.  I leap up as she hurls a tornado at me, launching me far into the air, fifty meters up.  

    I charge the only attack I can think of, even though I’m doubtful it will work.  She glances down nervously before staring back up at me, obviously focusing some sort of spell.

    Is she...afraid of heights?

    She fires off an <Ice Beam>, obviously hoping to stop my momentum.  My <Earth Wall> activates - for a moment, I’m doubtful it will work.  After all, there’s no ground for the wall to expand from.  But it works - the laser is thrown off course and barely nicks me.  The ground is now hovering over my previous wall, aimed to crush Anna.  She must realize this because she shrieks and jumps off, as the two plates crash into one another with a bang.  I collapse the walls for good measure, sending tons of rubble underneath me.  

    Anna’s falling, firing off a series of charged <Ice Beams> and that stupid electrical projectile again.  I let loose another <Earth Wall> to help negate some of the damage.  Despite the fact that the ice lasers and electrical bullets pierce the shield, it hides me from her sight and takes off some of the damage, giving me time to drink another [Mana Potion I] as well as a [Healing Potion I].  They will be topped off in under a minute.  

     A powerful blast of fire bursts through my wall, breaking it to pieces.  I watch the column of fire disappear into the sky.  Wow...

    We both land heavily on our feet, Anna screaming the whole time.  I get up first, the potion having helped heal off the damage I took.  Fortunately, the large amounts of earth that had hit the ground before us saved us from further injury, reducing the fall by huge amounts and giving us something to bounce from.

    A second later, all the rocks explode away from the pile, sending me flying until I smack painfully against the duel border forcefield.  I fire the charged <Fire Bolt> I had been holding on to, sending it crashing directly into Anna’s chest.  Three [Ice Beams] drill into my stomach and I am forced to use a [Heal Pulse], then an [Earth Wall] to stop me from falling to the ground and taking further damage.  As I collapse the wall, I consume a third [Mana Potion I] and for good measure, another [Healing Potion I].  

     Four <Fire Bolts> pierce my <Earth Wall> as it falls, creating molten rock that I jump away to avoid, rolling on the thawed ground.  A second later, hail begins to fall from the sky.  While it doesn’t hurt, I notice that my health bar slowly declines.  It’s not much - a few points every second, but it will begin adding up quickly.  I charge at Anna, who is in the middle of a whirlwind tempest, lightning crashing down around her.  She opens her eyes and smiles at me.  

     “Mana Regeneration potion.”  She says, laughing delightedly.  In response, I fire a charged <Ice Beam> that pierces the elements, dropping her health to nearly 55%.  The smile drops off her face as she releases all the power being stored in the storm, sending me flying backwards.  I’m guessing she drunk another [Healing Potion I] by the time I make it back to her, as her health is already climbing into green.

     “Oh, screw this.”  I say, activating <Flare> and <Lightning Misdirection> and throwing my sword, combining it with a <Lightning Orb> to help it hit.  The desperation in my throw is enough to send it through the second maelstrom she throws up, fire and electricity slamming right into her and knocking her back.  

     The lucky break I was hoping for - she drops her wand, but not before getting off a <Heal Pulse>.  I run to the wand and snatch it up as she recovers, picking up the sword and materializing a second burning sword.  

     The wand increases my MAG stat by 45.  I materialize my own flaming sword, marveling at the way it feels before launching a <Fire Bolt> at her.  She counters with her own - but instead of hers overpowering mine, we’re just about even.  I grin.

     “Fire Bolt!  Ice Beam!  Air Cutter!  Rock Barrage!  Thunderstrike!” 

      The last one charges up the wand, its star-shaped tip shining a brilliant blue before lightning drops from the sky, ricochets off the wand, and blasts into the space Anna previously stood at.  She managed to dodge most of the attacks, but her health wavers at just about 50%.  No matter, I’m just out of energy anyways.  I sprint forward, thrust my burning sword under her guard, and slash upwards.

Tyler is the winner of the duel!  Resetting HP and Mana...

     Anna groans. 

     “I was forced on the defensive...I should have known that hanging around the center wasn’t going to work.”  She admits, after I pay back her money.  No levels this time, but the EXP bar is just about filled.  Even a simple [Red Stalk] will boost me to level 17.  

     “Well, you did succeed in the sense that I barely got to double-wield.  If I didn’t also partially specialize in magic, I would have lost there.”  She shakes her head, disappointed in herself.  “But you outplayed me.  I had way higher stats than you in terms of MAG, but I still lost.  All those tricks you did - dropping the burning trees on me, attempting to ice over the field for a speed advantage, using the Earth Wall to control the ground, and then even disarming my wand-”  I interrupt, “That was unintentional.  That was kind of my lucky break there.  I would have lost if I didn’t stop you there - your attacks were starting to warm up.  And you played it well, too - supercharged Fire Bolts, that stupid paralyzing electric bolt-”  

    “Zap Cannon?”

     “Yeah, that.  And then that crazy wind explosion that sent me flying twice-”

     “Oh, that was a charged, amplified Whirlwind-”

     “And even wiping out all the trees to ruin my advantage.  That’s what forced me to get unorthodox.”  She laughs.  “In all honesty, I hadn’t expected the Earthquake to be so powerful.  But I guess sending two in a row to help magnify the terrain damage-”

     “Exactly.  Those ‘little’ things are what almost made me lose.  I got lucky for most of it.  Against anyone else, you would have won.”  She mulls over that for a second.

     “By the way, how did you beat Lindsey?”  She grins.  “I knew she didn’t have nearly the MAG resistances you did, so I just blanket-spammed Icicle Spears.”  

     “Cheap.”  Lindsey comes up from behind us, smiling, but I can see something wrong in her eyes.  Anna and I glance at each other meaningfully before she announces that she’s going to head back to the village to take a nap.  

     Now it’s just me and Lindsey.  

     “Lindsey-”  I begin, but she takes off, running into the cover of the forest. 

     And maybe it’s just the voice inside my head, but I could almost swear that I heard a choked sob.


	7. Floor 1 - Part 6 (Shopping Spree!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A party is made to explore the dungeon. Of course, some things need to be taken care of.

My newfound [Searching] skill gives me the option to enter [Detective Mode], showing me the recent footprints of players around me. I follow Lindsey's winding trail down, into the forest, and out into a clearing overlooking a small river.

She's sitting down, feet dangling over the water, unmoving. I call out her name tentatively and she doesn’t respond, wiping her face with her arm. 

“Is something wrong?” I ask, coming to a stop behind her, and she turns around with tear-streaked cheeks. “Lindsey...?” 

She lets out a deep, shuddering breath. “I was so scared, Tyler. When you jumped into its mouth...” Her hands, previously lying splayed on the ground, clenches into fists. “I thought you were going to die.”

"Well, I'm still here. I'm not going to-" Lindsey shivers and I stop talking. Instead, I sit down next to her, staring out over the river. As much as I can understand Lindsey's feelings, my gut tells me that my stunt with the earth golem isn't what really bothers her.

She takes my hand and laces her fingers through it. "Lindsey," I ask, staring at our intertwined fingers, "Why do you care about me?" She stares at me. "Why shouldn't I?" 

"I'm not trying to tell you to stop." I rush hurriedly, and she relaxes. "I just want to know why? Why do you trust me? Why did you bother to stay after you read [The Book]?"

"First of all, I didn't get to read the whole book." Lindsey points out, smiling slightly, "So I'll be interrogating Anna later. And I knew I could trust you back then. When we fought the first time, and you saved me." Lindsey scoots over and rests her head on my shoulder. "That's how I knew."

I...

I didn't spend much time thinking about that incident. Considering everything we've been through, I had a reasonable explanation. In fact, I had nearly forgotten. As new memories were made, it hadn't seemed very significant, just marking a tough spot in our friendship. But...

It clearly matters to the girl next to me. Enough that she would change her entire way of thinking. Does she trust me that much?

I send her a party invite. Lindsey blinks in surprise. "Together." I whisper.

A squeeze of her hand is all it takes for her to accept the request.

 

We make our way back to the village, and I message Anna to ask her where she's at. "The Holiday Inn." She responds a few seconds later, and I relay the information to Lindsey.

"So tired..." She whispers back to me. I hum in agreement before gently picking her up, cradling her in my arms, and she lets her eyes close, a small smile on her face. Anna greets me at the entrance of The Holiday Inn with a smirk, showing us to the room she rented for us. I don't even have the energy to look around before I drop Lindsey on the bed and collapse onto it.

 

This is awkward...

Lindsey's head rests on my chest, the girl still asleep. Her arms are wrapped tightly around my back.

And Anna smiles, happily taking a picture with her camera. I roll out of Lindsey's grasp, waking her up, and Anna darts away as I throw a nearby water bottle at her head.

 

"Alright, so what are we going to do today?" I direct the question to the girls on either side of me, who are focused on the holographic floor map. Lindsey's still blushing from waking up so close to me and Anna...

The suggestive looks she sends me are enough to make me want to bash her head against the wall but if that isn't enough, the coy tone her voice takes whenever she talks about Lindsey and I in the same sentence...

"I know what a certain cou-" I throw a pillow at Anna's head. "I guess we could help out at the dungeon. They've found the entrance but have yet to clear it, and we're all pretty high leveled."

"I heard they're stuck on a field boss, actually." Lindsey volunteers. I glance at her. "When did you find the time to gossip with other players?" I wonder out loud, "You've been asleep for most of the day." In response she simply points out the open window to where a flashing electronic billboard says: "REQUESTING PLAYERS FOR ASSISTANCE WITH FIELD BOSS, 1ST FLOOR DUNGEON".

"Tyler. Lindsey." Anna mutters thoughtfully to herself. "Lyler?" I chuck another pillow at her, which she ducks. "Alright, so is that our plan?" Lindsey nods and Anna continues to think out loud. "Okay, let's go then." Lindsey and I grin at each other before running to the window and jumping off the balcony, leaving a panicky Anna behind us. 

Running has never been so fun.

Until we both remember that we forgot to get new gear.

 

"Alright." I say, after our shopping spree, "I still need a new sword." Anna grins sheepishly as I send a sideways look at her.

"I'm set on weapons." Lindsey says, pulling out her new rapier. Anna had found it in her inventory, boss loot from the field boss we fought earlier, and passed it on. [Silver Spike] was a simple shiny gray rapier, straight and tapering off to a deadly point, though we noticed that there were no sharp edges. The hand guard was an intricate lace of flexible silver strips of metal that locked her hand into the sword. It does 50% more damage than the standard rapier and has an increased critical hit chance when you use stabbing Sword Skills, but 25% less damage for slashing attacks. Probably the best one of its class in the world right now. Anna had bought the [Basic Fire Wand], which multiplied her MAG stat by two and increased the intensity of her fire attacks. The standard star tip was replaced by a reddish-orange flame tip. There hadn't been anything for duel-wielders, though, so I was left with one and a half swords.

"Did you check your inventory?" Lindsey asks, "Maybe there's something from the boss drop." I shake my head. "No useable armor, either." All of the armor had been annoyingly heavy, and we agreed that it would harm more than help us. In the case of Anna, she pointed out that the heavier the armor, the more it reduced her MAG stat. In a nutshell, all we could really use was lightweight armor, like leather and cloth.

Anna picked up a black vest. "The stats on this are actually pretty good for lightweight armor." Lindsey and I went over to check. 

"30% reduction in damage to the chest area." She's right. Most of the other cloth armor we've seen only reduced damage by 5 or 10%. This is a huge improvement.

"But, look here. Maximum defensive stat is 30, or it's negated." We all glance at each other, then laugh, knowing that none of us had spent more than a light handful of points on the DEF stat. We purchase it and a matching set of pants. Equipping it, we stare at the mirror, then each other.

Lindsey giggles. The sound is so unfamiliar coming out of her mouth that for a moment I think Anna made the noise.

Anna...

"Oh my god." Lindsey bursts into a laughing fit, as I shake my head.

The redhead pouts. 

Lindsey looks fine in black. I am for the most part, unchanged; my shirt and pants were black anyways. But Anna...

"This looks so weird on me..." She whispers, crestfallen, and I snort. "Just a little." I say sarcastically. Her red hair and blue eyes look absolutely ridiculous standing out from the black, a huge contrast to the green dress she normally wears.

"I wonder if they have dyes...?" Lindsey thinks out loud, and Anna grins mischievously. "Shopping? That would be awesome! We could even take Tyler...Tyler?" 

I'm already halfway across the market square.

 

Two hours later, and we're almost done. Anna's chestplate is a forest green with her leather pants shaded brown, and Lindsey has dyed her armor to match her outfit.

We've also all bought shoes. As usual, mine are black. Lindsey and Anna chose stereotypical red sneakers with white laces. "Practical." Anna says, "And we can always dye them later." The redhead also buys cloth tan shin guards and elbow braces.

"You should get the shin guards." I point out to Lindsey, who gives me a confused look. I mime kicking her in the shin.

"That was back then." Lindsey says, "You couldn't do it now. I have AGI- Ow!" 

Her skin grows red where my foot made contact. I cross my arms at her and give the brunette a piercing stare.

"...Jerk." is all she says before buying herself a pair.

 

The dungeon is, of all things, underground. I’m not quite sure how we’re supposed to get to the floor above us, since nothing connects this one to the roof...A floating land.  
“Sorry, only high-level players.” A familiar player guards the entrance to the mossy gateway from two teenage girls, backed by two other familiar players. “Hey, isn’t that the group from the boss raid?” I whisper to Lindsey, who nods. “Raffy, Tony, and...Phoenix?” She mumbles back. 

“We’ll be fine.” One of the girls says, holding two knives relaxedly in one hand. Coming closer, I see her name: Krona. The other girl fidgets nervously, looking uncomfortable with a one-handed sword in her hand. 

“You, maybe, but the other girl?” The guy I know as Phoenix shakes his head. “She isn’t even comfortable with the sword. We’ve already lost dozens of players to this dungeon. Let’s not los-”

“We’ll party up with them.” I announce. Phoenix, who had no idea that our group had been standing there the whole time, jumps back. “Who ar- wait. I know you.” I nod at the weapon on his back. “Boss fight.” His eyes light up. “Oh...Hm...I don’t think we ever caught your names?” 

“Tyler.” I say shortly. “Lindsey.” The brunette doesn’t look thrilled at the prospect of a larger group. 

“Heya, I’m Anna.” The redhead says cheerfully. “Ditz.” I mutter under my breath. “How’ve you been doing?” 

While Anna and Phoenix talk about...stuff, I glance over at the other players. Tony and Raffy are talking in low voices, throwing pointed glances at me every few seconds. Lindsey looks thoughtful, staring intently at the gateway of the dungeon. The two girls...

Krona has dark brown hair and icily blue eyes. No, not quite. Sky blue? She wears a blue half-cloak that extends to her waist, hiding her chest. She wears baggy white shorts, giving me the distinct impression of an icicle. She’s casually throwing a knife into the air and catching it, while tossing the other one up. Juggling them. That’s amazing dexterity, and hints at a high AGI. 

My eyes catch the ones of the previously unnamed girl. Brown hair and chocolate-colored eyes, and in a simple white dress that extends to her knees. She steps closer to me, and very briefly hugs me. 

“Hi, I’m Morena. Thanks for helping us out.” The brunette says cheerfully. I shrug. “We were meaning to clear the dungeon anyways. It’s not a big deal.” I quickly open up a menu and invite Morena and Krona to the party. After a moment of thought, I invite Raffy, Tony, and Phoenix, remembering to add Anna in. Everyone accepts the invitation.

“Alright. Can I have everyone’s levels so I can decide on an appropriate strategy?” 

“Level Seven.” Phoenix, Raffy, and Tony say together. Not bad. 

“Level Four.” Morena shrugs. Definitely need to work on that...Hm...

After a bit of hesitation, Lindsey tosses in, “Level Fourteen.” The three guys and Morena gasp. Krona, on the other hand, looks relieved. “Level Twelve.” I guess she was afraid of being the odd one out, and is happy she isn’t. “Level Fifteen.” Anna says. I grin. “Level Eighteen.” Even Anna and Lindsey look at me in surprise. “When did you have the time to do that?” The redhead wonders.

“After I ran away from you guys in the market, I went out and farmed some more mobs. One of them was a weak field boss.” I shrug. “Wasn’t worth mentioning. Didn’t even drop anything good. Wait. Actually.” I unsheathe my half-melted standard double sword and toss it to the ground, equipping “Riftwalker.” instead. A silver, intricately carved hilt with a black blade. It’s just a tad bit longer than my normal sword, and a bit thicker around the base. The main perk is that it increases the intensity of the Sword Skills that use Mana, basically elemental Sword Skills . It doesn’t do extra base damage, however.

“Well, I guess the party leader is painfully obvious.” Lindsey murmurs, smiling happily, and everyone else thankfully shows a positive response, ranging from a nod by Krona to an exuberant cheer from Morena. I glance at her. I’ll need to work on that a bit...

“Before we go in, I’d like to pass out some gear. Especially you, Morena. You’re like a mix AGI/STR build, which is really unusual.” She blinks. “H-Huh?” 

I toss “Sharpened Iron Sword” to her, which she manages to catch in one hand. “Hey, she’s better than you.” Anna whispers to Phoenix, getting a light punch on the arm in return. “Use that. It’s way better. And...” I throw “Enchanted Chainmail Chestplate” to Raffy, who is using the shield. “If it’s stronger than what you have, then keep it.” Finally, I toss a pair of matching knives to Krona. “Lightweight Bone Knives” multiply her AGI stat by 1.1x and increases the intensity of certain Sword Skills. "I’m not sure if it’s better than what you have. If it is, keep it." She immediately equips them, marveling at the white hilt with a skull-shaped cross piece and a thin, piercing blade. 

"Also, this is all free." They stare at me incredulously. I don't need it, and you can repay me by not dying on me." I state flatly. Lindsey cracks a smile.

"Alright, so I was thinking we slowly make our way to the field boss while levelling up Morena." The brunette in question lets out a relieved breath. "It should be a chance to get everyone at least three levels up." I point at Morena. "If you're not at level ten by the time we get to the boss, I'll hang you from a tree." She gulps. "But how do I level up so fast?" She asks, looking nervous. I gesture at Anna. "Magical backup. Oh, and..." I dig into my bag and pull out ten [Healing Potion I's]. "Use these if you need to. Practice your Sword Skills, too." Morena looks a bit overwhelmed as she takes in all that information. I give her a critical look. "Heavy or light armor?" I ask her, referring to the style of fighting she is more used to.

"Um...light?" She replies tentatively. I sigh. "Do you know the difference?" She blinks. "Um...Nope!" She says cheerfully. I suppress the urge to facepalm. "Light armor means you want to be AGI based. It means that you can't have much armor, and as a result, defense, but you will move faster. Heavy armor means that you'll move slower, but have a lot more staying power. Which is higher? Your STR or your AGI?" She opens her menu and looks at the window. "They're all the same." She says, confused. "Wait, really?" I situate myself next to her and glance at her stats. "Huh. Weird." All of her stats are at 9. She has nine additional stat points, unused. "Well...I guess you get the choice, then." Morena stares at the windows in front of her, then shifts her focus to me. "Which is better for me?" 

"I'm not able to tell yet. I need to see you fight to see which style suits you better.” She nods eagerly. “Okay, I’ll do my best!” She’s so positive...Well, I don’t intend on going easy on her. 

“A few things before we go in.” Anna says, perching on a rock. Everyone looks at her.

“Firstly, there are a lot of treasure chests. Do not open them. Most of them will activate traps.” Speaking of which, I open up my menu, go to my [Searching] Passive, and read the descriptions. Basically, the longer I use the actives of the ability, the higher it goes up. Finding treasure chests and secret rooms will help the skill level up. An ability unlocked at [Searching] Level 50, called , lets me analyze chests to determine if they’re trapped or not, and the nature of the trap.

“I have the [Searching] skill.” I point out, Anna giving me a stare. “Do you have "Scan"?” 

“Uh...no.” She sighs. “Activate "Detective Mode", it’ll help you level up. Also, be in the front of the party so you can discover the chests and stuff first.” I nod. “Until then, we can mark the chest locations but not open them.”

“Every time you enter a dungeon, the layout changes. There are obviously a set amount of chests you can loot, but the reformatting of the dungeons mean that we’re exploring uncharted territory. Stay on your toes. If you see a player or a group of players, silence. Quietly inform Tyler. Some of them may be friendly, some may be hostile. Always be ready for a fight. Got it?” I nod approvingly.

“Um...” Morena hesitantly asks, “How did you know all that?” 

“I read [The Book] in its entirety. I memorized all the important information.” I chuckle quietly. “Nerd.” She shoots me a withering glare. 

Krona glances into the dungeon. “Are we ready?” The three boys and Lindsey look bored out of their minds. “I guess so.” With a final look outside, I turn and lead the way into the dungeon.

Immediately, things start going wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler, Lindsey, Morena (c) Crystalliced  
> Anna (c) sydneymunchikin  
> Tony (c) PoisonCookiez  
> Raffy (c) Raffy70  
> Phoenix (c) Ic3_Ph03nix  
> Krona (c) NOOB_SAUCE_LOL
> 
> If you see any blank spots, blame A03 on that one. From this point on instead of using , I will be using brackets, as A03 removes them. -_-


	8. Floor 1 - Part 7 (Dungeon Party!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected science convention!

  “I can’t see!”

     “Who’s stepping on my foot?”  I quickly open up a glowing menu and pull out a [Torch] from my inventory.  “Stupid dark dungeon...”  I mutter. 

     Lindsey ventures off to the side, and a few seconds later, electric light bulbs begin to flicker on.  Her hand is pressing a small gray button, the one that obviously turned on all the lights.  She smirks.  “Looking for this?”  I want to bash her head against the wall in frustration but I force myself to remember that she’s on my side. 

     The first room is simple.  A long, wide corridor, enough for our entire party to spread out comfortably with a bit of space.  The floor is cracked concrete, the kind of look a sidewalk would have, and the walls are plaster.  I swing my sword through it experimentally and it gives way, revealing a dark space of nothingness.  Morena shudders and backs away as some sort of white liquid flows from the top of the wall and runs over the hole I created.   A second later, it solidifies, patching the hole.

     “Let’s not try that with the floor.”  Anna advises, and I’m inclined to agree.  The trio of boys behind me shift anxiously.  Lindsey suddenly sprints forward. 

     An explosive trap sets off under her feet, but she’s impressively fast at this point and blasts right over the trap, taking minimal damage.  Judging her speed, I’d estimate her to be sprinting at 20 mph.  That’s...fast.  I’m pretty sure I can only run at 12 mph or so myself.  

    Her real target, though, is the [Stone Guardian] that spawned fifty meters down the path, which she sprints past before circling around and chaining multiple stabs into its back.  

    That isn’t going to work.  That mob looks like it has an incredible defensive stat, and even though Lindsey has perfect critical hits, minimal damage has been done.  Or so I think.

     Her final stab shoots right through the guardian, impaling it on her rapier before a [Fire Bolt] placed directly inside the mob blows up.  It shatters as Lindsey skips back to us, obviously pleased.  I sigh, knowing that there’s no point in wasting my breath lecturing her.  

    Three more of the [Stone Guardians] spawn, and this time I snag her arm before she runs off.  “We have to let the others level up.”  I whisper to her, and she thinks about this before agreeing.  “Raffy, Phoenix, Tony.  Think you can take one of them down?”  They nod confidently.  I guess they don’t consider it much of a threat after Lindsey destroyed one solo in seconds, but she is double their level...  “Morena, Krona.  Attack the other one.  Anna, provide magical backup as needed.”  The girls nod.  “Lindsey and I will take down the third one.”  Lindsey rolls her eyes, completely aware that as amazing as a performance she put on, I can do so much better.  “Just you, actually.  I want to watch.”  I shrug.   Then I use my newest magic skill, [Blink], to teleport behind and above the Guardian.

     It’s over in a second.  All Lindsey sees is a flash and a searing bolt of fire that instantly kills the [Stone Guardian], decapitating it.  The arrow pierces the floor and disappears.  I land on my feet with a flourish, hands empty.  

     “W-What?  How?”  I grin.  

     The whole time I had been giving out orders, I had been charging a [Fire Bolt] in my right hand, and in the midst of my [Blink], activated it.  At the same time, I had created [Burning Blade], the flaming sword that Anna tried to use against me in our duel.  As soon as I had appeared, I had first swung up with [Razor Wind], a dual-wielding Sword Skill that created a little crescent of wind, then immediately swung down with [Overhead Strike] to increase the velocity of the flaming sword before throwing it and launching the [Fire Bolt] at the same time.

     I didn’t hit the Guardian with the sword swing.  Instead, the sword and [Fire Bolt] had merged together, traveling at an amazing speed before combining with the wind crescent from my earlier attack and blossoming into an overpowered arrow that completely obliterated the head and upper body of the mob.   I didn’t even need the critical, the sheer damage of the attack probably could have one-shot even a player.  

      “Not saying.”  I smirk, and she frowns, clearly unable to comprehend what I did.  The floor pieces itself back together, a forcefield having caught the shards of the floor.  

     I turn back towards the other party members.  Raffy absorbs a blow before Phoenix swings down with his giant sword, cracking the skull of the Guardian.  Tony leaps up and quickly bashes the golem under its chin with his own shield, which glows a purple.  A Sword Skill!?  With a shield?  

    Raffy lowers his shield for Phoenix to jump on, and the next swing of the iron sword cuts the Guardian clean in half.  They cheer.  Satisfied with their teamwork, I turn to Morena, Anna, and Krona.

    It’s immediately obvious that Morena would rather work with an AGI build, as I suspected.  She skirts around the [Stone Guardian], launching an opportunistic attack here and there.   They don’t do a lot of damage though, as her STR isn’t enough to breach the defense of the golem effectively, and lack the power of a Sword Skill.  Morena’s not fast enough to completely dodge a swing of the golem’s arm and is sent skidding backwards, a good chunk of health being taken from her.  Anna, alert to the battle’s proceedings but refusing to launch any attacks, heals the damage that Morena takes and she jumps back in.  

    Where’s Krona?

    A blue and white blur drops from the ceiling and slashes down, raking gashes in the Guardian’s chest before kicking off and leaping off the wall to unleash a twirling purple stab that gouges out the head of the golem, before jumping back to dodge a counterattack.  Not a lot of STR, obviously, as that should have taken out the golem, but incredible speed.  She might be as fast as Lindsey, or even quicker...

    Morena surprises me with a Sword Skill, a series of three slashes that are chained so quickly they look like one.  Only my visual acuity given by [Searching] lets me tell the difference.  It's ineffective overall, but that one Sword Skill did more damage combined than all of her other attacks previously.

    Krona kites the Guardian and stabs deeply into its neck, leaping off as it tries to grab it.  Lindsey tries to look past them down the corridor, to where many more of the [Stone Guardians] have spawned.  "Can I-"  

     "No."

     Lindsey sighs, then lies down on the ground.  "That's rude."  I whisper.  "Go away."  She replies, not even bothering to open her eyes.  I take out a [Popper] from my inventory, activate it, and drop it on her face.

     The resulting shriek is louder than the noisemaker.

    After a few minutes, Morena finally beats the golem into submission, and levels up.  But she’s already panting, exhausted from the exertion.  We aren’t going to get anywhere at this rate...

    “Firstly, you’ll want to put some levels into AGI.  You fight with a lighter, quicker style, similar to Lindsey and I.  However, your stats aren’t high enough to do damage, so you’ll also want to put some points into AGI.”  I move to her shoulder and stare at her window.  “Yeah, 12 free stat points.  For now, I’d say...4 STR and 8 AGI.”  She nods and drags the levels in.  “14 STR, 18 AGI...”  I mutter to myself.  “Alright, that should be fine.  For now, anyways.  We’ll need to keep raising your STR until you can actually attack those golems, so you might actually be better off trying an STR build for now...No, wait.  Then you’d have to learn two different styles, and that might mess you up...Morena?”  She’s staring at her hands, studying a little cut on her palm that is visibly sealing off.  But...her fight has been over for quite a while.  Wounds are supposed to heal nearly instantly...

    “Morena?  What’s with your hand?”  She snaps up and looks at me.  “Um, well, it just stings a little.”  My eyes widen.  Then I pull out my sword and quickly slash at her arm, grazing her arm slightly.  You can attack party members, but it will negate anything more than a light cut.  This allows your party members to, say, push you out of the way if you’re about to step on a trap.  Here, though, it lets me test something out without kicking her from the party.

     She winces.

     “You...you...don’t tell me.  Oh god...”  I stare at her.  “You can feel pain, can’t you?”  The brunette nods.  

     Normal players, like Lindsey and myself, will not register the real levels of pain.  If we were stabbed through the chest, we would feel a sense of shock and annoying discomfort.  A little tiny scratch, like the one I left on her arm, should have not even affected her.  But she can feel it.

    So if she takes even one battle hit...She could be in serious trouble, if she can’t weather the pain in time to block other attacks.  Morena...

    “This complicates things...Morena.”  She can’t use a shield, ever.  The agony of taking a huge hit on it would cause her to drop it, even if it didn’t pierce the barrier.  Nor can she ever be a defensive tank; they’re designed to take hits, and she can’t realistically take even one.  

    “Reset your point distribution.”  I quickly point out the correct button and she obediently follows my instruction.  “Put those 12 extra points into MAG, instead, and take this.”  I give her Anna’s [Basic Wand].  “Your MAG should be at...44, right?”  She glances at her menu.  “Um, yeah.  And everything else is just 10.”  

   “Alright.  That’ll be good for now.”  Morena gives me an inquisitive look.  “Um, excuse me for asking, but why did you do all of that stuff?”  

   “You can feel pain.  If you choose to use a sword and engage in close combat, even the smallest hit is enough to completely mess up your focus, and you will die.  With Magic, you can stay away from the fighting while doing significant damage and also acting as a support for your team.  You’ll take a lot less hits, and as a result, live a lot longer.”  I...

     We’ve only been through one battle together, but yet I feel so close to this girl...

     “Oh, I see now.  Thank you!”  She gives me a smile.

     Heartwarming.  That’s the word for it.

    “We’re almost there, guys.”  We’ve spent a few hours traveling through hallways, cutting through the [Stone Guardians].  I work almost exclusively with Morena, Anna offering advice when I have none to give.  In the space of about five hours her magic has blossomed.  

   The thing is, your spells depend on your MAG skill as a maximum limit.  However, it is completely possible to suck at using magic even with a very high MAG skill.  It isn’t necessarily just saying the spell and watching it happen - that will give you a neutral response, which is what I have been doing.  Nothing worse, nothing better.

     But if you throw yourself into your spells, like Anna does, you are able to intensify your skills further.  That’s how she pinpointed her [Ice Beams] back in the boss fight to knock Lindsey and I out of the sky.  The player’s will, MAG stat, and technique - all of those influence spell power.

    At first, Morena’s spells had been incredibly weak - she had the will, but her MAG stat was only decent and her technique was awful.  Realistically, her spells were at my level just before the field boss fight.  She should be able to at least match my current level, if not surpass it - after all, she is magical dependant.  

    So we worked with her technique.  Form and visualizing the spell were only two factors to technique.  A lot of it had to deal with external conditions - for example, if it was raining, Fire-Type spells would be weaker.  Wind conditions...a lot of things could minutely affect the way you used Magic.  

   Fortunately, Morena is pretty smart.  She absorbed all the things we told her right away, and from then on it became practicing the concepts she had learned, and creating her own attacks.  During a particularly intense skirmish, she created a cone-shaped [Whirlwind] and launched a charged [Fire Bolt] through it to tear through three [Stone Guardians].  She manipulated her spell with nothing but intense concentration that allowed her to make a new attack based off of old concepts, something even Anna hadn’t done.  

    Then she took it a step above.  She actually manipulated the shape of a [Fire Wave] to be more focused, creating a far more intense beam of heat that melted right through a [Risen Defender], turning its iron armor to melted scrap.  

     “She’s incredible.”  Anna whispers to me, as we watch her use [Earth Wall] to crush a mob into the ceiling.  Morena shocks us when the wall turns into molten rock, which she then manipulates to explode outwards to do severe damage to the surrounding mobs. 

     “No way...Did she just?”  I say, amazed.  “She infused the [Earth Wall] with fire magic...I think I need to learn from her.”  Anna says in awe.  

     Lindsey teleports behind one of the [Stone Guardians] and brings it down in a single hit.  Ah, that’s right.  Her [Flash] ability, a new active from her [Sprint] skill, allows her to teleport a certain amount of meters at the cost of mana, very similar to [Blink].  However, the cost is much less.  

     Krona stabs a glowing knife into the shoulder joint of one of the golems.  The electricity charged into the blade paralyzes it, and a few swift stabs brings it down for good.  

     The trio of boys, on the other hand, continue practicing their excellent teamwork.  Phoenix will tend to deliver a powerful opening Sword Skill that has a long cooldown, as Tony blocks a counter attack before Raffy targets weak points of the mob with elemental magical spells.  The cycle continues.  Eventually Phoenix begins two-shotting all of the [Stone Guardians].  Tony and Raffy begin an interesting game where they get on either side of a mob and bash it back and forth.  This only really works on the new mobs we encounter, [Fallen Berserker].  While the Stone Guardians have low movement speed and attack power, but higher defense and health, these leather-clad skeletal warriors move surprisingly fast with high damage.  They are, however, easily stunned - a single [Shield Bash] from one of the shield-wielders is enough to take them out of the game.  [Risen Defenders] are more complicated, wielding a traditional lance and shield with iron armor.  A very balanced, truly humanoid mob.  They have a severe weakness to fire, however.

      And that’s how we level up.  All the mobs drop high experience, and most of us tend to level up about once every forty-five minutes or so.  Morena, meanwhile, levels much quicker - exp requirements are lower at low levels and she deals massive damage to a significant amount of mobs, which should, in turn, give her more exp.  She’s gotten so much more powerful...

     “I almost miss when you could barely hold a sword.”  I say, faking a wistful tone.  She punches me lightly in the arm.  “Well, I have you and Anna to credit for that.  So, thank you.”  Morena says sincerely, and I wave it off.  “I just don’t want nice people to die.”  She rolls her eyes.  

     I’m distracted by Krona taking a nasty hit from a [Risen Defender], a sickening thwack marking the blow.  I step up and jump to catch her as she is thrown backwards.  Her health - under half.

     “Krona, increase your Defense!  If you take that much damage from a Defender, you’ll get instantly killed by a critical hit!  Don’t play it so close...”  She sprints back in and does some sort of whirling attack that finishes off her target.  Wordlessly, the cloaked girl walks back with her menu visible, clearly adding extra DEF points to her stats.  “I didn’t think they would do that much damage.  I won’t give them a second chance.”  She darts past me and teleports past a [Fallen Berserker], stabbing it in the back with incredible speed.  I aim a [Heal Pulse] at her, to be safe.  

    Wow, she’s faster than Lindsey...Who would win in a duel, I wonder?  It’s obvious Krona has next to no magic while boasting superior AGI.  But she also has much less STR and DEF...Lindsey’s slightly more balanced.

     This could be interesting.

    “Alright, this is it.  Before we go in, do an equipment check and top up your HP if you need to.  I have some potions for everyone.”  I hand them out.  “Also, please tell me your levels.  Your role in the boss battle will change based on that.”

    “15.”  Morena volunteers.

    “20.”  Lindsey.  Not surprising.

    “14.”  Tony offers.

    “Yeah, that’s my level, too.”  Raffy adds.  I frown.  The field bosses’ level was intended to be fought by level 12 and up, but I had wanted to enter with a wider safety margin.  Eh, they'll be fine.

     “15.”  This from Phoenix.  Huh.  I guess all those [Stone Guardians] he cleaved through dropped more exp than I had anticipated.

     Krona looks around sullenly, then throws in, “Level 18.”  A little higher than I had expected.

     “I’m, uh...”  Anna looks at her menu.  “Level 22.”  I smile.  Two competent mages, three AGI builds, one STR build, and two shields.  That's good for a boss fight.

     “Alright, that’s fine-”  

     “No, wait.  Tyler.”  Lindsey interrupts.  “What level are you?”  I take a moment to check.  

      Huh.  That’s a lot higher than I had expected.  “Apparently, Level 25.”  I say, causing them to gasp.  “Well, then.  We’ll destroy that field boss!”  Phoenix says, cheering.  Levels, levels...Isn’t there something I’m supposed to do?”

      “Wait.  Lindsey, Tyler.  We can all pick a second active weapon now.”  We stare at her.  “Every twenty levels you can choose another slot for an active weapon.  You don’t need too, though, but for you, Lindsey, you might want to consider something to go with your left hand.  And Tyler, you should consider [One-Handed Sword].  It’ll widen your Sword Skill range and eventually allow you to switch between both styles on a whim, that way if you get disarmed you can start swinging with full damage instead of half.”  That really makes sense.  I drag in the appropriate ability from a menu.  Yeah, that was it.  Every ten levels I need to pick new skills.  Speaking of which...

     “And the rest of you, all of you can choose a passive ability.”  Anna goes around showing them how to do it, as none of them had known.  Eventually Morena settles on [Weapon Throwing].  Interesting.  When I ask her what for, she smiles and refuses to answer.  Krona gets [Sprint], predictably.  

    Phoenix got [Weapon Forging], the ability to make your own weapons, and only weapons, with raw material.  Tony chose [Tailoring], interestingly enough.  He can make stronger armor with proper material.  Despite the name, you can even choose to make metallic gear.  Raffy decided on [Enchanting], the ability to strengthen a weapon through magic and an anvil, at the cost of raw material.

    While they discover their new skill, I check the levels of my own.

    [Dual-Wielding] is at level 112.  With it, two new skills to add into my chaining strategy.  [Searching] is now at level 64, meaning I’ve unlocked [Scan.]  I activate it for the first time and immediately the glowing red outline of a door appears to the left of me.  

    “Hey, uh, Anna?”

    “Yeah?”  

    “What’s the field boss door look like?”  

    “Well, it’s supposed to be a hidden red door-”

     “With a glowing purple outline of a skull in the middle?” 

     “Um, yeah.  How did you know?”

     “It’s right here.” 

     Anna studies the door critically.  “There’s nothing there.”  I kick it open, breaking through the wall to reveal a wide, spacious, grassy field, and give her a pointed look.  “Oh, Searching.  Right.”  I roll my eyes.  Morena giggles.  

     The room itself is a flat, open field.  There’s no roof, either, showing the bright sunlight.  Storm clouds appear to be gathering on the horizon, rain being visible in the distance. 

     As we step in cautiously, using my [Scan] to check for traps, a giant clay golem rises from the ground, forming into a large humanoid shape about nine feet tall.  It does not have a face, and its arms and legs are simply shaped.  It looks like a kindergarten art project.  [The Clay Warrior]’s boss name appears, along with three bars of health.  

     “Morena, Anna, you’re in back!  Take opportunistic strikes, charge all your attacks, and heal others as necessary!  Krona, Lindsey, hit and run tactics, do NOT get hit.  Raffy, Tony - you two are up in front, Phoenix, you too!  Take up its attention and call for a heal when necessary.  Got it?”  A general shout of affirment and we split up to do our respective jobs.  

    Immediately Anna launches a lightning bolt that flashes over my shoulder.  “Clear the middle so that we can launch attacks!”  Morena cries out, before firing an [Ice Beam] infused with an earth element that anchors one of the giant’s feet to the ground.  I dash sideways to avoid a <Fire Bolt> that knocks the giant back a step.

    Lindsey and Krona are already whirling around the giant, stabbing it rapidly.  It can’t even touch them, not with one foot cemented to the ground.  A devastating blow from Phoenix cripples the other, sending it crashing to the ground where it writhes as it continues taking critical hits from the two AGI builds.  I sprint in and activate [Lightning Misdirection], inflicting short paralysis on the golem, enough to nearly stop its movements as I rapidly strike its head back and forth.  Within no time, the first bar of health is depleted.  

    “Everyone get back!”  Anna says, “We need to observe it for any changes as it loses health bars!”  We all quickly jump off as it breaks the chain of icy earth holding it to the ground, staring as armor slowly appears on the giant as it expands to about twelve feet tall.

    Morena gasps.  “Look at its face!”  We all stare, horrified, as crude lines are hollowed in, creating a grotesque imitation of a human.  A very large clay human.

    The armor, too, begins to show some detail, faint lines depicting different plates and sections of the armor.  “There are gaps in the armor, particularly at the joints.”  Krona notes.  I hum in agreement.  "Alright, you two can split up and circle the thing to stab throu-"  The clay giant reaches into the ground and pulls out a large, straight stone sword.  There are no patterns or designs on the blade or hilt, none that I notice, anyways.  “Um...”  Alright, it’s still big, and that giant stone sword must be insanely heavy, so it probably can’t move it very fast, right?  

     The golem holds the sword straight up, scraping the ceiling with the tip, then slashes straight down, slamming the blade into the earth.  The ground explodes, sending all of us flying with the shockwave as a dust cloud forms.  

      “Ugh...”  Lindsey picks herself up from the ground.  That must have been its special attack...

      “Is everyone okay?”  Damn, I can’t see with all this dust...And I lost my sword.

      “Whirlwind!”  Anna yells, blowing the sand (and Krona) away, restoring our vision.  “Sorry...” she mutters awkwardly, to which the cloaked girl shrugs.  “All I care about is seeing again.  I’d rather take a weak wind blow than a sword blow.”  A rumbling sound warns us of the approach of the field boss, and I spin to see it bearing down on me.  

     [Flare] explodes into motion, my swords flying upwards to guard against the powerful blow.  Without Lindsey combining my attack with hers to create a powerful [Vertical], both of my swords would have shattered and I would have been knocked back.  As it is, we manage to deadlock, leaving the golem wide open to a crippling blow from Phoenix, tearing through the vulnerable knee joint unprotected by armor.  A [Thunderstrike] that Anna bounces off my swords into the monster’s mouth does a lot of damage, and a packed earth ball from Morena sends it reeling backwards.  Lindsey and I quickly jump back, the two shield-users getting into place in front of us.  

    Krona glances at us.  “I think I’ve got a feel for its reaction time.  Can I start fighting it?”  I stare at her, weighing my options.  She clearly wants to be useful, but I’m afraid that a single hit will cleave right through her.  “Don’t get hurt.”  I say, and she nods, sprinting off towards the boss at an incredible speed.

    Phoenix is now the target of [The Clay Warrior], but is saved from needing to dodge by Raffy and Tony jumping in to take the blow on their shields.  Krona takes her chance and leaps up onto the golem’s neck, stabbing deep into the vulnerable flesh before jumping off, leaving some sort of long, metal rod in it. 

    I think I see what she’s doing.  She must have had a strategy meeting with the two girls behind me.  

    “If everyone could stand back right now.”  Anna asks, as Morena fires several massive [Fire Bolts] into the air.  A lightning flash flickers ominously.  They’re not seriously going to...

    The giant leaps up towards us.  “Now!”  Anna cries, and two [Earth Walls] punch out of the ground and slam into the underbelly of the golem, launching it up.  The circuit connects.

    A real lightning strike descends from the clouds and pounds into the metal rod embedded in the giant’s neck, transferring hundreds of megajoules of energy right into the boss.  Both health bars splinter like glass and the boss collapses, slowly fading away into nothingness.  A simple metallic rod, the only evidence of the fight, falls to the ground.

    “What...the...hell?”  Phoenix finally manages, staring at the crater left behind.  The two magicians look at each other.  “Too much?”  Morena asks, and Anna nods.  “Didn’t expect that level of damage.”   Krona smirks, self-satisfied.  

    “The Fire Bolts were to speed up the process, right?”  I ask.  Anna smiles and says in a sing-songy voice, “Yup!”  I chuckle.  I get it.

     The brownish shiny metal rod served as a lightning rod, to provide a bolt of lightning (three, in this case) a path of least resistance into the ground.  That is, if it had been embedded in the ground.  Instead, the mages used Krona’s speed to pierce the giant itself with the lightning rod, ensuring that any lightning attack would go right into the giant for super-critical damage.  The Fire Bolts were to help intensify the power and, therefore, damage of the lightning bolts.

    The way Thunderstrike, the magic ability, works, is that magical energy is converted into the shape of a lightning bolt, negatively charged, and attracted to your wand, creating a powerful electrical attack that you can ricochet off your wand or sword.  The rod was positively charged, likely by Morena, who has amazing control over the raw elements and likely has the skill and smarts to do that.

    But what happened is that a REAL lightning bolt was formed by the lightning storm heading our way.  An electrical current was formed by the field of the clouds.  Once the current was completed, a bolt carrying hundreds of megajoules of energy transferred itself into the boss, hundreds of times more powerful than a simple [Thunderstrike].  That’s what destroyed the boss and left the crater.  

    “How did you charge the rod?”  Morena grins.  “I’m pretty sure you didn’t expect the real lightning bolt to come down, but that was intentional.  Not a 100% chance, but close.”  I stare.  “Anna came up with the technical idea.  Krona and I made it possible.”  

     “Alright, let’s see...The rod?  That’s copper.  You can rub copper against glass and it will charge the rod with a negative charge.  The glass will receive a positive charge.  Opposites connect and so the copper and the glass are drawn to each other, although the copper is too heavy to be moved.  She pulls out a broken shard of glass from her inventory.  “When I found this thing on the ground in the Holiday Inn that’s when I began formulating the idea.”  I shake my head in disbelief.

     “Anyways, once we charged the rod, we just had Krona stab it very quickly into the giant.  If she had held onto it too long, she might have gotten hit.”  I nod.  “So you guys then used Thunderstrikes to fire lightning directly into the boss for much more damage, right?”  Anna nods.  

     “Yes.”

     “And the Fire Bolts?  Specifically, what did they do?”  

     “Hm, how to explain it...?  Well, basically, heat caused by friction is part of the process of lightning formation.  Updrafts and down-”

     “English.”  I’m not sure where she got all that information from, but she’s venturing into the overcomplicated side of things and I’m not following it.

     She rolls her eyes.  “The heat from the fire helped set conditions for a real lightning strike.  Knocking the golem up with the earth walls helped make the electrical current easier to connect.  The negative electrical field of the copper rod was extremely weak, but, honestly, wasn’t really necessary.  It just confirmed that the lightning would hit that exact spot.  What made the connection of the real lightning bolt possible was our own, weaker Thunderstrikes that provided a current for a real bolt to hit the rod.  Honestly, I’m surprised it didn’t shatter into bits.”  We stare at the smoking piece of metal. 

     Krona nods.  Lindsey’s clearly confused but probably doesn’t care enough about the technical details to pay attention.  The trio of boys are comparing items and money.  Speaking of which...

     “Did either of you get the Last Attack Bonus?”  I ask the two magicians.  They shake their heads.  “Our attacks were absorbed by the bolt and negated.”  

     “I got it.”  Krona volunteers.  She scrolls through her inventory.  “Only a few items...um...oh, here!”  She pulls out a blue, fragile-looking crystal knife and throws it to Lindsey, who snatches it out of the air.  “Thanks.”  Krona nods.  I glance at Lindsey, who pulls out her rapier to test it against the knife.  

     The blade of the knife is slightly under a meter long, amazingly big for a knife.  You could almost call it a sword, actually.  “I’m using a secondary knife with my rapier.”  Lindsey says.  “This is actually really good - it applies a slight slowness effect.  Are you sure you don’t want this?”  Krona shakes her head.  “You’ll benefit more from it - it’s too long and light for my style.”  Lindsey nods.  “Well, thanks.  This is...” Lindsey flips the knife into a reverse grip and swings quickly, the blade flashing through the air.  “This is amazing.  It even has good durability.”  

     “Well, we beat the field boss.”  I state the obvious to gather attention.  “I’m guessing that what gave people issues would have been the third stage of the boss, which would occur at the depletion of its second health bar.  So, thanks, Anna, Morena, Krona.  And the rest of you, too, for helping us get this far.  I...”

    I stare at them.  “We should keep being a party.  For this floor, and the next.  All the way to the top, together, helping each other improve, and getting better along the way.”  Anna smiles.

    “I’m in.”  The redhead says.   Lindsey and Morena look at each other.

    “So are we.”  Krona shrugs.  “Why not?”  Raffy, Tony, and Phoenix are still comparing their items.  Morena throws a knife that flashes past their heads and gets their full attention.  “We’re partying.”  Lindsey says, smirking.  “You’re stuck with us.”  They look at each other.

     “Um, okay?”  That’s good enough for me.

**      “One thing first.”  Anna says.  We look at her.  “You!”  She points at Morena.  “Duel me.”  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler, Lindsey, Morena (c) Crystalliced  
> Anna (c) sydneymunchikin  
> Tony (c) PoisonCookiez  
> Raffy (c) Raffy70  
> Phoenix (c) Ic3_Ph03nix  
> Krona (c) NOOB_SAUCE_LOL
> 
> Beta'd by ic3_ph03nix and giiagriiarie


	9. Floor 1 - Part 8 (Inferno Magic?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morena v. Anna. A surprising change in the friendship between Tyler and Morena.

  Lindsey walks up to me with a sandwich.  "You want one?"  The brunette offers, and I shrug.  "Why not?"  She passes it off to me and I bite into it without a second thought.  "Thanks."  I say, before stuffing my mouth again.  "I used your money, so its fine."  I roll my eyes.

Duel starting in sixty seconds!

Anna is on the left, closing her eyes.  Probably already focusing on a few spells to charge and coming up with new strategies.  She's the smart one.  But Morena...she's creative.  And she has insane control over the raw elements and has mastered infusion within hours of being taught about it.

Duel starting in thirty seconds!

"My bet's on Anna."  Lindsey says suddenly.  I shake my head.  "I'll take that bet.  Morena's got this."  And I really believe it.  Maybe she's ten levels lower, but Morena is a magical genius.     

    "I'll bet you 5,000 gold."  Lindsey announces, and I frown.  "Win or lose, you'll just steal it all anyways."  She grins.  "Yup!"  I sigh.

Five...four....three...two...on-

A crackling, dazzlingly bright bolt of electricity bridges the gap, which Morena blocks with her own.  Immediately after, an [Ice Beam] is deflected by a hasty, pinpoint [Earth Wall].

     I see.  Infusing the magic needed to use her advanced magic must take some time.  Anna's keeping her on constant defense with brute force, to prevent her from doing so.  Eventually Anna's MAG stat will overpower Morena's, and she'll lose.

    A series of quick wind blades - Anna's mistake.  Morena uses [Earth Wall] to send herself up, effectively giving her the time needed to infuse her mana.  The flow of battle changed, all in under ten seconds.

    An [Earth Wall] explodes out of the ground behind Anna, infused with ice.  Icicles protrude from the wall, razor sharp.  "Look!"  Lindsey points, and I follow her gaze to where the stalagmites are rupturing and actively moving towards Anna, a path of sharp crystals.  The redhead jumps back, and not too soon, because every icicle explodes simultaneously to create a deadly trap of frozen shrapnel.  

     “Oh, I see.  She infused the ice with fire, then let it out in one blast.”  Lindsey shrugs, admiring the blue cloud of ice.  A focused, aimed [Whirlwind] from Anna scatters the crystals as Morena fires off a series of blue [Fire Bolts].  “Lightning Orb?”  I wonder vaguely, and indeed, the flame seems to curve just slightly closer to Anna even as it flashes past her at a breakneck speed.  Anna recognizes the danger and counters them with rocks that expand out of her wand, negating both of the elements.  A high-pressurized blast of water slams into her stomach and sends her comically flying fifteen or so meters back.  Unlike Morena, though, she doesn’t have to deal with the pain of the hit and recovers instantly.  Six more of the blasts of water follow, easily dodged.  By now the ground and most of the grass is covered in a shallow layer of water.  What’s Morena’s plan here?

     “How did she get the water?”  Lindsey asks.  “She manipulated Ice Beams and heated the energy to melt the ice.  I think she’s going to try to-”

      My suspicion is confirmed when a [Zap Cannon], a little electric bullet, is fired down from the sky to nail Anna in the face for paralysis.  She manages to recover in time to dodge a [Thunderstrike].

    Sort of.

    The water conducts the electricity and serves to reapply paralysis to Anna, sending her crashing to the ground.  A veritable barrage of lightning bolts rains down from the sky, all damaging the poor redhead.  The electricity should be easy to dodge - while paralysis will prevent her from creating fire hot enough to evaporate the water, nothing stops her from making a simple [Earth Wall] to pull herself out of the electrified liquid.  Unless she’s too dazed by the shocks - and I KNOW she isn’t.     
    No, the answer is much simpler.  Anna can’t control the Earth Wall yet.  She’d make one about 20 meters high.

    That’s too high for her.

    Anna’s afraid of heights.  

    The redhead screams in frustration, before emitting a bright light that temporarily blinds us.  

    Lindsey and I gasp in awe.

    She froze it.  The entire arena.  The water is solid.  The wall of earth is covered in frost.  

    Anna's not done.  With a shout, all the crystals explode into bits.

     Recycling the same trick Morena used.  Infusing ice with fire to spontaneously shatter it.  The damage to the earth wall is too heavy and sends it crashing down, taking Morena with it.  The brunette desperately shoots [Fire Bolts] to melt the ice, creating a safer landing area.  She slows her fall further with an air blast, decreasing the velocity of her descent.  But she can't fly forever.  Morena lands into the water she's created with a splash.

    At first, I think Anna's going to electrify the water.  Instead, she shoots an [Ice Beam] that freezes the liquid pool Morena is trapped in.  

    I see.  If Morena is caught, she will most certainly receive the [Freeze] status effect.  A 3x effective fire attack from Anna, with her MAG and buffed flame elemental attacks...It will end the duel.  Anna pauses the energy laser, and quickly drinks a red and a brown potion, to bring her health and mana back to max. 

    Silence.

    Did Morena get frozen?

    Anna charges a fire attack, her wand glowing red.

    A scream.

    "What the-"  Lindsey yelps, before a laser of pure energy falls from the heavens and lands on the spot that Morena is encased in.

    "Super...nova!"  She screams, and a massive explosion destroys most of the room.  The shockwave is so powerful that Lindsey and I, hundreds of meters from the duel, are sent flying into the air.

    A flash of blue, and Krona breaks my fall.  "Thanks."  I say breathlessly, and she nods.  Lindsey, twenty meters behind me, is jumping out of the arms of Phoenix, the two boys behind him.  The six of us stare at the wreckage.  Smoke obscures the battlefield.

    Anna uses a focused blast of wind to blow it away.  What we see makes us stop in our tracks, then dash forward for a better look.

    Morena?  I blink towards the duel, bouncing off the barrier.

    Her wand has been replaced by a scepter.  The rod is matte black, shiny, probably metallic.  It's a meter long.  The jewel at the end of the scepter is glowing a fierce orange.

    Glowing, intricate flame designs are still being carved onto Morena's dress, the fabric itself a violent red.

    The ice is shattered, scorched and cracked earth appearing under it.  Anna takes another step back.

    I grab Lindsey excitedly.  "We read about this!"

    The girl that was Morena raises her scepter, the jewel shining.  "Unique Magic Skill:  Inferno Magic!"  She shouts clearly.  Anna quickly fires a lightning bolt and a [Zap Cannon], both attacks missing when the girl floats into the air.  

    "Fire.  Wind.  The complementary elements!"  Morena shouts, then it's over.

    Anna fires a colorful parade of spells.  A single flaming energy pulse, covering the ninety meters separating the two mages in a split second, connects with Anna's stomach, tearing through all of her spells along the way like rice paper.

Morena is the winner of the 50% HP duel!  Restoring HP and Mana to original levels...

    Just as quickly as it appeared, the transformation of Morena disappeared.

The fire scepter faded away, her wand reappearing in her hand.  The designs of fire peeled off and dissipated.  The girl dropped to her knees.

     "Morena!"  Three [Blinks] teleported me to her in an instant, catching her before she hits the ground.  She groans.  "Owww..."

     "Sore?"  I ask her, placing a hand on her forehead.  "You're feverish."  The girl giggles.  "I just transformed into a super awesome fire princess.  I'm supposed to be a little...hot."  I roll my eyes as she laughs and hug her.  "You know you're only one of three people who can do that?  That's amazing..."  In truth, I think I'm a little jealous.  Morena's ten levels under me, but she has something ensuring that she's stronger than me.

     I hear footsteps behind me.  Turning around, I watch Lindsey carrying a laughing Anna, the rest of the party lagging behind.  Everyone goes silent when the two mages lock eyes.

   Anna tackles the flustered brunette to the ground, eliciting a surprised "Uwahhhh~" from her.  "Do you even know what you did?  Do you?  You have a unique skill!  Oh my god!"  The redhead squeals.  Lindsey and I glance at each other and she manages a smirk.

    "Um..."  Morena gasps, "You're crushing me..."  Anna immediately gets off of her.  "Sorry, sorry!"  The girl gets up, wincing slightly.

    "Hey, look at your health."  I say, getting their attention.  Morena's health is barely in the green.  "That can't be right...you have a decent amount of DEF...I didn't even hit you, there's no way a fall into water did that much damage.  It was just the ice...?"

     "Morena, when you activated the, um, what's it called?"  She glances at her menu.  "Inferno cloak."  Anna looks confused.   "There wasn't a cloak, though."  Lindsey shakes her head.  "Magical cloak."  She's figured it out, too.  "Wait, what?  I'm confused."  Uncharacteristic of the redhead.

     "She activated it as a skill, not as an item or spell.  I'm not sure how it works, but it creates a magical corona of energy around her and gives her access to previously unobtainable spells while locking others.  This was unlocked at some point during the duel when you were pushed to a certain limit.  It also amplified your stats somewhat.  This is one of three magical skills predetermined by your character data, and all of them have balanced stats.  How much of that is true?"  The brunette shrugs helplessly.  "The activation was weird.  I was trapped in the ice when I felt some sort of warmth in my heart, then I released it.  That's when I felt like really strong.  Something controlled my mouth though - what did it say?"  

    "Unique Magic Skill - Inferno Magic!"  Lindsey mimics.  "Fire and Wind - the complementary elements."  I blink.  "You could say I have a magical memory."  Lindsey says, grinning.  I punch her lightly in the arm.  "Hey!"

    "Anyways."  I butt in.  "I'm guessing that the power is drawing off your life energy."  The girl in question winces.  "So don't rely on that, okay?  Emergencies only."  She nods.  "It's better that I keep it secret, anyways - people might get jealous."  Like I did.  "I mean, it's completely overpowered right now."  We glance at the giant crater dozens of meters deep and hundreds of meters wide.  "You don't say..."  Lindsey mutters.

     I frown, thinking of another problem.  "Morena, are you in control of yourself while in that state?"  I don't particularly want a berserk monster running around.

    "Yup.  I don't remember saying the words, but I definitely was awake dodging the spells she shot at me before nailing her in the stomach with a Fire Bolt."  Anna's jaw drops.  "That was a Fire Bolt?"  Morena nods.  "How the..."  Lindsey perks up.  "I know!  Anna, come.  Get ready to make a Fire Bolt, but don't charge it."  Lindsey begins focusing on her own.  After about a minute...

   "Three..."  The brunette chants.  "Two, one, fire!"

    The two flame attacks smash into each other and fizzle out.  I grasp the implications.  Two attacks, the same, negating each other.  But Lindsey can't have more than 10 MAG, and I know Anna has like, 300 MAG.  So how...?

    "I charged the attack, compressed it, added a second one, charged it, compressed it, and so on."  It takes a pretty powerful mind to manipulate the element...  "That was five different Fire Bolts, all mashed into one.  Morena's powers would probably do much more than that, and amplify the whole thing with Wind.  After all, Fire and Wind complement each other."  Incredible...

    Morena starts clapping, and  I join in.  The redhead gets over her shock and brings her hands together, too.  "Oh, come on." says a flustered Lindsey.  "I just stated the obvious."  //deadpan//

     "I didn't get that."  I mutter.  "Yeah, that was new to me."  Morena says.  Lindsey gives Anna a hopeful look, but the redhead shakes her head.  "I didn't know that."  The brunette sighs.  “Well, I thought it was obvious, okay?”  Awkward silence ensues.  

     "Oh, right.  Unrelated, but I kind of wanted to brag, so..."  Anna turns to Morena.  "Fighting you unlocked my second tier of magic and I now have like twelve new abilities to study, so can I do that?  She directs the question at me.  "We should head back, get some supplies and rest, and then defeat the boss.  If you really want to trade sleep for study time, you can.”  I say.  Morena's eyes widen.  "Do they have beds?"  The brunette asks.  We stare at her in shock.

    "You poor girl."  Lindsey finally breathes out sadly.  "We're going, now!"  Anna yells at the group of boys and Krona, who are running around the edge of the crater.  "We need to take her to a bed."  I say.  "Yeah, where have you been sleeping all this time?"  Anna inquires.  "Haven't had a chance to yet."  Morena says.  "I heard it's ama - ah!"  Anna suddenly picks the younger girl up, making her shriek.  "We're taking you now."  It's obvious that Anna can't really carry Morena, though - her STR stat must be low - so she dumps the girl into my arms.

    Morena immediately locks her arms around my neck, hanging on for dear life.  I slide an arm under her back and another one behind her knees, easily supporting her weight.  Anna smirks, self-satisfied.  "There we go."  Realization dawns on me.  "You want me to carry her all the way back to Holiday Inn?  That's like an hour away!"  The two girls give me a withering glare.  "Suck it up."  Lindsey says bluntly, before they turn away.

    Jerks.

    Krona, Phoenix, Raffy, and Tony take the chance to level up a bit more before we reach the mossy gateway.  The four seem to have bonded, though over what I can't imagine.  Observing their fighting style, though, I realize that Krona has been integrated into their strategy.

    The new [Berserker Golems] have decent speed and attack, with higher defense than the normal [Stone Guardians].  Yet they're taken down in less than six seconds.  

    First, Tony runs forward and shield slams the golem's sword, knocking it off balance.  Krona quickly runs up and stabs knives into the weak leg joints of the mob, slowing and damaging it.  They both jump away as Raffy and Phoenix dash in.  Phoenix leaps up and swings down hard as Raffy bashes the head of the mob sideways to expose its neck, decapitating it.  Instant kill.  

    Somewhere along the way Anna jumped onto Lindsey’s back, and got permission to be carried.  I roll my eyes.  The girl in my arms has fallen asleep - I’m still cradling her in my arms.  I stare at her peaceful smile.  She’s so cute...

     “We’re here!”  Lindsey whispers to me, trying not to wake up the two girls.  I nod back at her, and together we drag our respective partners out of the dungeon and into the real world.  

     Lindsey and I stare at Anna, curled up on the bed.  “She’s so...cute.”  Lindsey murmurs, and I silently agree.  “I’m just going to...”  Lindsey climbs onto the bed and tucks herself in, yawning.  I grin, taking a picture in my mind as she stretches.  “Good night, Lindsey.”  She looks at me through lidded eyes.  “Night, Tyler.”  I carry the unconscious Morena out to the second room, intending to leave her on the bed and sleep on the couch. 

     I can’t peel her hands off, though.  It’s like she’s glued to me.  I sigh before lying down on the bed with her.

     This is...nice.  She rolls over, her head coming to rest on my chest.

     I...

     I’m not mean enough to pull away.

     I wake up without opening my eyes.  “Anna, I swear to god, get out.”  The redhead giggles and I hear the distinct snap of a camera.  “Ugh...”

     The brunette next to me just holds me tighter.

     "Morena..."  Her chocolate colored eyes open to stare into my own.  "Please..."  She whispers.  "Alright."  I murmur, and it's hard to suppress a smile when she buries her head into my chest again.

      She's so warm...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tyler, Morena, Lindsey (c) Crystalliced  
> Tony (c) PoisonCookiez  
> Raffy (c) raffy70  
> Phoenix (c) Ic3_Ph03nix  
> Anna (c) sydneymunchikin


	10. Floor 1 - Part 9 (Preparations?)

  "Today's the day."  Seven pairs of eyes bore into me with varying levels of interest.  "The boss fight is today.  We have no idea what it'll be like-"

     "No, we will.  The Book gave us some information on that."  Anna interrupts.  "May I?"  I shrug.

    "First of all, the boss will have multiple health bars.  At the destruction of each one something will change about the boss, whether it be its attacks, its armor, or who knows what else.  So back away after every round."

    "Similar to the field bosses, right?"  Krona asks, and Anna nods.  "The floor boss is on a whole different level, though.  While we're insanely overleveled, we still need to be careful."  Everyone shoots pointed looks at me.  If there's one thing I am, it's cautious.  After everyone rested up, I dragged them all out to a series of brutal training sessions dragging on over days and now everyone is level 25 or higher.  I personally am Level 32.  It's getting to the point where mobs drop practically no experience, because our requirements for levelling dramatically increased after Level 20.  Probably to combat everyone just farming the floor forever, I guess.  It does mean we should be good for quite a while, now.  

    Everyone also has brand new gear.  I bought a cool black cloak that offers decent magical resistance.  I'm still using [Riftwalker], but the field boss dropped an impressively powerful sword that I claimed immediately.  My new right-handed sword, [Firestar Ignition], is able to be used as a makeshift wand, sans the magic boost, so I can use spells without needing to sheath a sword.  On top of that, it also increases the power of fire type magic.  It seems especially compatible with [Flare] - the magic seems to explode out of the sword rather than simply coating it.

    “Where’s Morena?”  Krona asks.  “Um, sleeping.”  Phoenix groans.  “How come I didn’t get to sleep in, man?”  I roll my eyes.  “Because she had to put in the most effort to level up.  She stayed up two hours later than the rest of you guys.”  

    It’s been three days since I assented to Morena sleeping with me, and...I don’t know how I feel.  Something’s changed.  Now I don’t hesitate to crawl into bed alongside her, even if I still blush every time I wake up next to her.

    “I’m not sleeping.”  A girl’s voice calls from the bedroom.  “I’ll go check.”  I volunteer.  It’s a good time for privacy and a chance to determine the difference in our relationship.  We’re just...friends, right?  

    “Morena?”  She’s staring at her menu quietly, sitting on the edge of the bed.  “What’s wrong?”  I plop down on the red and green sheets next to her.  “It’s just, this...”  She points at her window, where we stare at her [Inferno Magic] button.  “What about it bothers you?”  I ask.  

    “It scares me.  I mean, before, I was good.  Not super amazing, but good.  I mean, when you gave me a wand.  Not before that.”  She rushes over her words.  “I’m not used to being, you know...depended on.  What if, in the boss fight, something goes wrong and people have to rely on me?  What if I mess up?”  I rest a hand on her shoulder and she goes silent.  

    “Even before you discovered that skill, before you even got your wand, I counted on you.  Morena, when I invited you to the party, I expected you to be able to hold your ground as well as level up and learn along the way.  If we had gotten ambushed, I would have trusted you to be able to watch my back.”  She doesn't look particularly convinced.  How can I explain this...?

    "Just try your best."  I finally say, when it becomes clear she won't reply.  I turn to walk out when her hand snags my arm and pulls me back towards her.  "Morena?"  I ask, confused.  She hesitates for a second before swiftly leaning forward and pecking me on the cheek.  "Thank you."  She blurts out, then jumps off the edge of the bed and walks out.

     I touch the spot where her lips brushed my skin thoughtfully.  

     Our party makes it to the dungeon just as the self-imposed dictator of the boss raid stands up.  "Listen up, you rats!  You're all under my control so do exactly what I say!"  Lindsey gives me a loaded look.  I shake my head.  She wants me to put the guy in his place, but I'm not particularly willing to take charge.

    "Hey!  That isn't nice!"  One of the party members in another group yells out, and the grey-haired 'leader' of the raid marches over to him, just fifteen meters away.  Here I can clearly see his name:  "Akiba."

    "Don't give me any lip, boy!"  He growls, raising his hand to hit the player across from him.  Lindsey tenses, but I'm a step ahead of her.  [Flash] drops me off between the other boy and Akiba and a simple backhand knocks the older male a few steps back.

     “I thought you were here to make sure we all got through this together.”  I say flatly.  “If you can’t be trusted to handle that responsibility without bias, then maybe you shouldn’t be the one I hand my life to.”  

     “Look here, boy.”  He sneers, “Get back in line and don’t cause any more trouble, or I’ll have to-”

     “Or you’ll what?”  I ask patiently.  “Lose more control than you already have?”  My fingers tap the hilt of [Firestar Ignition] slowly.  “If you want to get into a fight over leadership right now, we can.   Just as a note of warning, I’m already Level 32.”  

      Predictably, the man only laughs.  “That’s a load of crap.”  Akiba scowls, “And I’ll prove it!”  Without further hesitation, he slowly pulls out a large, two-handed sword from his bag.  As I predicted.  

     “What are you?”  I sigh, not even bothering to pull out my weapon.  “Level 17?  Maybe 20?  Don’t hurt yourself, now.”  Pissed off, he charges at me, swinging down with the sword.  

      A flare of energy sends him and his weapon flying.  “Whirlwind.”  I mutter, a second after the wind-based explosion expands out from me.  

      “Alright.  I think that’s what people call a peaceful revolution.”  People look back and forth nervously between me and the dazed Akiba, lying on the ground.  “Does anyone have any objects to my party leading the boss raid for this floor?”  A few murmurs, but nothing hostile, and more than a few approving looks.  

      “Alright.  Have fun with the briefing, Anna.”  I step back and allow the overexcited redhead to take the stage.

      “That was really cool.”  Morena whispers to me as I assimilate into our party.  

      “I don’t want an idiot to lead people to their deaths.  If people have to die today, I don’t want them to be in vain.”  I could tell her what she wants me to say - that everything will be fine and everything will turn out peachy - but I think we’re both aware that things could take a drastic turn for the worse, depending on how the others react to Anna.  But I don’t want people to die needlessly, deaths that could have otherwise been avoided had we been open with the information Anna is now sharing to everyone.  I don’t want that on my conscience.  

     “I know it’s naive of me to say this, but I really think that we’re strong enough to protect everyone if we need to.  We know what to expect...we’re way overleveled, thanks to you.  We have good gear and lots of battle experience.  And even now, we’re handing out items to people who need them and sharing information that could save lives.  Given this...if anyone dies today, it will be because what we were expecting differed drastically from what we’ll really meet, and we’re already expecting something more powerful than we’ve ever seen yet.  If we lose this fight...what will that do to the morale of everyone else who wanted to join in the boss fight?” Morena looks around the group we have.  “Twenty-four people, and a pretty good balance of offense, defense, healing, and supplementary.”  

      “Theoretically, we’ll be fine.”  I say, still finding myself a bit nervous.  “But things don’t always go as easy as they seem like they should on paper.  There’s always...something, that could go wrong?  What if there are traps we weren’t told about?  What if-”

      “There’s no point in thinking about what could happen, Tyler.”  Morena says, kicking my leg softly.  “You’ll worry yourself to death, and then we’d really be in trouble.”

     “If I die today-”

     “When you die.”  Morena says.  “You’re certainly not going out today.  If you lose such an easy battle, then I’ll never be able to respect you again.”

     “Wow, I didn’t know you cared.”  I say sarcastically, though a bit teasingly, too.  She laughs lightly.  “Oh, shut up.  We can do this.  Just be confident, and have faith in your team.”

      “Does everyone have everything they need?”  Anna calls out, and is answered by a chorale of affirmatives.  “Alright.  Let’s head off, then.”  A cascade of cheering follows.  

       “Is everyone in the party here?”  I ask quietly.  “One, two, three, four, five, six...Where’s Lindsey?”  

       “Above you.”  A disembodied voice whispers, and I stupidly look up.  “Not really.  Damnit, Tyler, you’re supposed to be the smart one.”  

       “Where the heck are you?”  I say, bewildered.  She’s not left, not right...not up...below?

       “Here.”  Lindsey shimmers into view in front of me.  “Wha-”

       “It’s a special ability unlocked by having a certain ratio of agility to strength and defense points.”  She explains.  “Oh, and you need to have [Sprint].  All I’m doing is vibrating back and forth, but I kind of have to stay in one place.  It’s a nice cloaking thing.”  

      “You’ve no idea.”  I say, blinking, and admittedly, a little bit awed.  

      Morena’s right.  All I have to do is believe in my team, and they will pay me back tenfold.  

      “Let’s go, then.”  And without hesitation I take off running towards the location of the boss dungeon, my party and boss raid group following closely.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Akiba (c) Crystalliced


End file.
